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THE  CHICKASAW  NATION 

n 


A SHORT  SKETCH  OF  A NOBLE  PEOPLE 


Souvenir  of  Memphis  Centenary  Celebration 
May  19-24,  1919 


By 

JAMES  H.  MALONE 


Copyright  1919 
By  James  H.  Malone 


°iio . £ 

v m 3 ;> 
0 


To  My  Dear  Wife 

Estelle  Verney  Malone 

To  whom  I owe  so  much, 
These  pages  are  inscribed 


FOREWORD. 


During  a somewhat  protracted  experience  at  the 
Memphis  bar,  my  attention  was  early  called  to  the  treaties 
of  1832  and  1834  between  the  United  States  and  the 
Chickasaw  Nation. 

Under  these  treaties  the  Chickasaws  ceded  the  last 
inch  of  that  vast  and  splendid  domain  which  they  had 
conquered  and  occupied  long  before  Columbus,  sailing 
westward,  looked  upon  the  shores  of  what  was  called 
a new  world. 

There  are  lines  of  deep  pathos  in  those  treaties. 
From  time  to  time  my  attention  was  called  to  the  early 
history  of  the  Chickasaws,  and  I made  some  notes,  and 
still  later  wrote  some  fragmentary  sketches  upon  the 
subject,  more  as  a diversion  than  otherwise.  In  assisting 
with  our  approaching  Centenary  Celebration  (May  19- 
24,  1919),  I concluded,  almost  at  the  last  moment,  to 
print  what  I have  already  written  as  a souvenir,  and  as  a 
small  contribution  to  local  history. 

Should  time  and  opportunity  permit,  I hope  to  com- 
plete what  I design  to  call — “The  Chickasaw  Nation;  A 
Short  Sketch  of  a Noble  People.” 


May,  1919. 


James  H.  Malone. 


CONTENTS. 


Chapter  I. 

As  to  the  Origin  of  the  American  Indians. 


Chapter  II. 

As  to  the  Origin  of  the  Chickasaw  Indians. 

And  herein — 

(1)  How  the  Indians  Preserved  Historical 

Events 20 

(2)  Traditions  of  a Western  Origin 22 

(3)  “Did  the  Separation  Take  Place  in  the 

West?” 26 

(4)  The  Indians  Were  the  Mound  Builders.  . 29 

(5)  Traditions  Also  Point  to  an  Asiatic  Origin  31 

(6)  Conclusion 33 

Chapter  III. 

The  Dawn  of  History  for  the  Clxickasaws. 

And  herein — 

( 1 ) De  Soto  Lands  in  Florida  38 

(2)  De  Soto  Reaches  the  Chickasaws 42 

(3)  The  Original  Chickasaws  as  They  Were.  44 

(4)  Battle  With  the  Chickasaws 49 

(5)  What  Caused  the  Conflict  . 59 


Chapter  IV. 


Topography  of  the  Country  Between  the 
Chickasaw  Country  and  Chickasaw  Bluffs. 

And  herein — 

( 1 ) Dr.  Rowland  Has  Shifted  the  Bulwark  of 

His  Defense 66 

(2)  How  Language  Should  Be  Interpreted.  . 69 

(3)  The  Trails  of  the  Chickasaw  Indians ...  . 71 

(4)  The  Short  Cut  Trail,  or  the  Pigeon  Roost 

Road 81 

(5)  Pigeon  Roost  Creek  and  the  Pigeons.  ...  89 

(6)  The  Trail  from  Holly  Springs  to  New 

Albany 96 

Chapter  V. 

The  Four  De  Soto  Narratives  Quoted  and  Compared . 
And  herein — 

(1)  The  Text  of  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas.  . . 103 

(2)  The  Text  of  Biedma 106 

(3)  The  Text  of  Ran j el 108 

(4)  Opinion  of  Professor  Lewis  Criticised.  . 109 

(5)  De  Soto’s  Route  to  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs . 117 

Chapter  VI. 

De  Soto  at  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs. 

And  herein — 

(1)  The  Location  of  Quizquiz 148 

(2)  De  Soto’s  Camp  Near  a River  Bank.  ...  151 

(3)  Garcilaso  de  la  Vega,  the  Inca 156 

(4)  The  Account  of  Garcilaso  de  la  Vega..  160 

(5)  De  Soto  at  the  Mississippi 165 

(6)  De  Soto  Crosses  the  Mississippi 167 

(7)  The  Country  Opposite  Memphis  Dove- 

tails with  the  Narrative 169 


CHAPTER  I. 


AS  TO  THE  ORIGIN  OF  THE  AMERICAN  INDIANS. 

When  Christopher  Columbus  sailed  from  Spain  in 
August,  1492,  going  westward  over  an  unexplored  sea, 
the  expectation  of  discovering  a new  world  was  far  from 
his  thoughts. 

It  had  for  years  been  the  dream  of  his  life  that 
there  must  be  land  beyond  the  limits  of  the  Atlantic, 
and  that  by  sailing  to  the  West  he  could  discover  a 
nearer  route  to  India  than  was  at  that  time  in  use. 

The  riches  of  India  were  believed  to  be  almost 
boundless,  and  Venice  and  other  centers  of  commerce 
had  amassed  wealth  in  trade  therewith ; all  of  which  fired 
the  imagination  of  Columbus  who  was  naturally  of  an 
adventurous  disposition,  and  withal  a man  of  great  dar- 
ing and  ability. 

After  some  months  of  sailing  it  took  all  the  in- 
genuity and  address  of  the  great  sailor  to  prevent  an 
open  mutiny  of  his  crew,  consisting  of  120  men,  who 
became  discouraged,  many  of  them  fearing  that  they 
would  be  cast  away  upon  what  seemed  to  them  a limit- 
less waste  of  desolate  waters. 

Finally  when  the  crew  was  almost  in  a state  of 
mutiny,  one  night  Columbus  descried  a light  and  soon 
land  loomed  up  in  the  distance,  and  then  the  vessels  lay 
to,  until  next  day,  when  they  were  overjoyed  to  behold 
a beautiful  forested  land  from  which  friendly  savages, 
perfectly  naked,  issued  forth  looking  upon  the  white  men 
and  their  vessels  with  evident  astonishment. 


2 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Attired  in  scarlet  Columbus  with  his  principal  offi- 
cers and  men  bearing  the  standards  of  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella,  were  soon  on  the  land,  when  the  admiral  fell 
on  his  knees,  kissed  the  earth  and  returned  thanks  for 
his  safe  deliverance  with  tears  of  joy;  and  his  example 
being  followed  by  his  men,  he  arose  and  with  sword 
in  hand  declared  that  he  took  possession  of  the  country 
in  the  name  of  his  King  and  Queen. 

In  so  doing  he  ignored  the  rights  of  the  aborigines, 
whose  ancestors  had  possessed  the  country  as  their  own 
from  time  immemorial. 

He  claimed  the  country  by  what  is  termed  the  right 
of  discovery,  or  which  might  otherwise  be  termed  the 
right  of  might. 

Long  years  afterwards  in  the  year  1823,  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States  through  Chief  Justice  Mar- 
shall solemnly  adjudged  that  in  point  of  law  the  Indians 
had  no  real  title  to  the  country  they  occupied,  but  that 
European  nations  secured  the  title  thereto  by  right  of 
original  discovery,  which  was  the  subject  of  barter  and 
sale,  regardless  of  the  rights  and  claims  of  the  aborig- 
ines who  for  ages  had  occupied,  claimed  and  owned 
distinct  and  separate  parts  of  the  new  world.  (See  the 
case  of  Johnson  v.  McIntosh,  8 Wheaton,  543.) 

Columbus  named  the  island  on  which  he  landed  San 
Salvador,  and  thinking  that  it  was  a part  of  India  he 
called  the  inhabitants  Indians,  and  this  designation  has 
clung  to  the  aborigines  of  America  to  this  day,  and  will 
doubtless  endure  for  all  time. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


3 


This  is  but  one  instance  illustrating  that  when  an 
error  has  once  fixed  itself  in  the  popular  mind,  that 
it  is  next  to  impossible  to  correct  it.  In  this  instance 
the  error  is  harmless;  but  in  other  departments  of  the 
many  factors  which  go  towards  making  up  the  onward 
march  of  civilization,  like  errors  and  delusions  have 
greatly  delayed  progress  in  many  of  the  activities  of 
human  life. 

This  memorable  voyage  of  Columbus  was  the  signa1 
that  soon  brought  forth  many  adventurous  sailors,  whc 
sailed  the  seas  over  in  the  quest  of  fortune  and  fame ; 
but  years  rolled  by  before  it  was  known  that  in  point 
of  fact  a new  world  had  been  discovered. 

Amerigo  Vespucci  among  others  having  crossed  the 
ocean  to  the  main  land  of  the  Western  hemisphere,  so 
impressed  his  contemporaries  with  reports  of  his  dis- 
coveries, that  the  new  world  became  his  namesake,  and 
ever  since  has  been  known  as  America,  an  honor  un- 
deserved and  that  should  have  been  bestowed  upon  Colum- 
bus, but  instead  he  was  rewarded  with  poverty  and  chains. 

It  was  not  until  years  afterwards,  that  Magellan 
succeeded  in  passing  around  the  southern  extremity  of 
America,  and  gave  his  name  to  the  wild  and  dangerous 
straits  through  which  he  passed  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific  ocean,  and  the  latter  to  this  day  bears  the  name 
he  gave  it. 

His  dream  was  to  prove  that  this  world  in  which 
we  live  is  a globe,  but  his  dream  ended  with  his  life 
April  27,  1521,  in  the  Philippine  Islands  which  he  dis- 
covered. 


4 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Fortunately  his  lieutenant,  Sebastine  d’Elcano, 
proved  a worthy  successor  to  the  great  Magellan,  and 
succeeding  to  the  command,  he  sailed  onward  and  after 
discovering  many  islands,  finally  doubled  the  southern 
extremity  of  the  African  continent  and  returned  to  the 
port  from  which  he  sailed,  thereby  proving  to  be  true 
the  theory  of  Magellan,  and  which  in  turn  proved  that 
America  was  a new  world  beyond  the  shadow  of  a doubt. 

Magellan  had  sailed  with  five  ships,  but  only  one, 
the  San  Vittoria,  circled  the  earth,  arriving  at  St.  Lucar 
near  Seville,  September  7,  1522,  after  a voyage  of  more 
than  three  years. 

She  had  accomplished  the  greatest  achievement  in 
the  history  of  the  world  up  to  that  time,  for  she  had  cir- 
cumnavigated the  Globe.  The  tremendous  importance 
of  this  great  voyage,  and  its  effect  upon  the  intellectual 
development  of  mankind  lies  far  beyond  the  scope  of  thesr 
pages. 

The  wise  men,  philosophers  and  especially  the  eccle- 
siastical world  were  thrown  into  a great  discussion  to 
account  for  a new  world,  peopled  by  many  tribes  and  na- 
tions theretofore  unknown,  and  likewise  forested  with 
innumerable  new  trees  and  plants  through  which  roamed 
countless  new  animals,  while  the  air  was  filled  with  birds 
and  a feathered  tribe  totally  unknown  in  the  old  world. 

The  question  debated  was  as  to  when  and  where  all 
of  these  things  were  created,  and  especially  were  they 
created  as  a part  of  that  six  days  creative  acts  set  forth 
in  the  sacred  writings  of  the  Christian  religion. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


5 


To  doubt  that  all  men  were  the  descendants  of 
Adam  and  Eve  was  to  deny  the  authenticity  of  the  scrip- 
tures, and  would  probably  have  put  in  jeopardy  the  lib- 
erty or  life  of  one  so  bold  as  to  raise  such  a question. 

It  is  difficult  for  us  now  to  realize  how  profoundly 
the  question  as  to  the  origin  of  the  American  aborigines 
affected  the  learned  men  and  ecclesiastics  of  that  time, 
and  even  in  comparatively  modern  days. 

One  of  the  early  and  favorite  theories  was  a sug- 
gestion or  argument  put  forth  that  when  the  ark  of 
Noah  finally  rested  on  Mount  Ararat  that  by  unknown 
means  some  of  its  passengers  became  shipwrecked,  so 
to  speak,  and  in  due  course  of  time  some  of  them  reached 
the  new  world,  and  that  the  Indians  were  their  descend- 
ants. Volumes  were  written  to  sustain  this  view. 

Other  authors  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  in 
the  remote  past  Diodorus  Siculus  relates  that  the  ancient 
Phoenicians  discovered  a large  island  in  the  Atlantic 
far  beyond  the  pillars  of  Hercules,  which  abounded  in  all 
kinds  of  riches.  Plutarch  mentions  what  Plato  said  as 
to  the  information  given  in  respect  thereto  by  Egyptian 
priests.  This  is  what  is  sometimes  called  the  fabled  At- 
lantis. Many  believe  even  to  this  day  that  there  was  such 
an  island  known  as  the  Atlantis,  which  formerly  ad- 
joined other  islands  so  that  America  might  have  been 
peopled  from  Europe  by  persons  going  from  one  island 
to  another  until  the  American  continent  was  reached. 
The  Azores  islands  are  supposed  by  some  to  be  the  tops 
of  the  mountains  on  the  Atlantis  island  at  the  time  a 
great  submergence  took  place  in  some  prehistoric  period. 


6 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


I was  in  the  Azores  in  1912,  and  to  me  the  islands  had  a 
mountainous  aspect. 

Another  theory  and  the  one  probably  most  written 
of  and  advocated  by  learned  writers,  is  to  the  effect  that 
the  Indians  were  the  descendants  of  the  lost  tribes  of 
Israel ; that  is  that  they  are  the  lineal  descendants  of  the 
Jews.  Among  these  writers  I read  only  one,  viz:  that  of 
James  Adair,  who  published  a lengthy  account  of  the 
American  Indians  in  London  in  1775,  which  has  never 
been  republished  and  is  a rare  book. 

Adair  was  an  English  trader  and  commenced  to 
trade  with  the  Indians  in  1735,  and  first  traded  with  the 
Chickasaws  in  1744,  and  among  whom  he  wrote  the 
greater  part  of  his  book. 

The  book  contains  404  pages,  of  which  220  pages 
consists  of  what  he  denominates  “Arguments”  in  proof 
of  his  theory  that  the  Indians  are  descendants  of  the 
Jews.  There  are  twenty-three  of  these  “Arguments,” 
each  being  about  the  usual  length  of  an  ordinary  chapter. 
Adair  was  perfectly  conversant  with  the  marriage,  di- 
vorce, inheritance,  burial  and  all  other  rites,  laws  and 
customs  of  the  Chickasaws,  and  neighboring  nations,  as 
a white  man  could  well  be ; and  at  the  same  time  he  was 
perfectly  conversant  with  the  Old  Testament;  and  the 
ingenuity  displayed  by  him  in  an  endeavor  to  show  a 
similarity  between  the  ancient  customs  and  laws  of  the 
Jews  with  those  of  the  Indians  is  worthy  of  admiration. 

John  R.  Swanton,  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Eth- 
nology, wrote  me  on  March  21,  1917,  that  by  all  odds 
the  best  account  of  the  Chickasaw  Indians  was  the  work 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


7 


of  Adair,  even  though  it  was  marred  by  his  “Argu- 
ments” in  favor  of  his  favorite  theory,  for  he  knew  the 
Chickasaws  at  first  hand,  and  wrote  what  he  saw  and 
heard. 

In  addition  to  the  above  theories  there  are  two  doc- 
uments, one  of  Chinese  and  the  other  of  Scandinavian 
origin,  which  undertake  to  relate  the  discovery  of  a coun- 
try, the  first  by  the  Chinese  early  in  the  Christian  era, 
wherein  the  kingdom  of  Fu-Sang  was  established,  and 
it  is  claimed  Fu-Sang  was  upon  American  soil,  hence  the 
descent  of  the  Indians  from  the  Chinese. 

The  Scandinavian  Vikings  early  discovered  Iceland 
and  it  is  recorded  in  the  Sagas  that  about  the  year  981 
A.  D.,  Eric  the  Red,  an  outlaw  of  Ireland,  discovered 
Greenland,  and  the  same  Sagas  or  written  legends  which 
set  forth  these  discoveries,  also  relate  that  subsequent 
thereto  the  Vikings  made  frequent  visits  to  the  South,  to 
a land  which  had  been  discovered  there  by  one  Bjarni, 
and  which  was  given  the  name  of  Vinland  about  the 
year  985  A.  D. 

There  is  much  diversity  of  opinion  as  to  the  trust- 
worthiness of  either  the  Chinese  or  Scandinavian  ac- 
counts. 

There  is  a theory  also  that  America  was  settled  by 
Japanese,  as  many  Japanese  junks  have  drifted  to  the 
American  coast,  some  empty,  and  some  with  men,  but  it 
is  said  there  is  no  evidence  of  a Japanese  woman  having 
ever  arrived  in  this  way. 

A cold  current  flows  from  the  arctic  regions  down 
Southward  by  China,  hence  it  is  said  no  Chinese  wreck- 


8 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


age  has  ever  reached  American  soil.  On  the  other  hand, 
what  we  call  the  Japanese  current  flows  north-westward 
near  the  Japanese  islands,  and  as  the  current  runs  at  the 
rate  of  some  ten  miles  an  hour,  wreckage  could  well 
reach  America. 

While  the  origin  of  our  Indians  is  by  no  means  defi- 
nitely known,  still  I am  strongly  inclined  to  believe  that 
their  original  ancestors  came  across  Bering’s  Straits 
from  Asia  to  Alaska  at  some  very  remote  period.  The 
straits  dividing  the  continents  are  variously  estimated  to 
be  only  from  36  to  56  miles  across,  and  in  addition  there 
are  in  it  two  islands  of  some  considerable  extent,  and 
these  are  about  midway  between  the  shores  of  the  two 
continents  and  are  known  as  the  Diomede  Islands,  and 
are  inhabited  by  Eskimos.  Besides  the  straits  are  often 
frozen  over  in  winter,  so  that  the  hardy  natives  would 
find  no  difficulty  whatever  in  crossing  on  the  ice  from 
Siberia  to  Alaska. 

In  1906,  my  wife  and  I were  in  Nome,  Alaska,  and 
after  going  upon  the  steamer  Olympia  to  sail  for  Seattle, 
a large  open  boat  came  alongside  containing  a jolly 
family  of  Eskimos  with  the  peculiarity  that  the  heads 
of  the  men  were  shaved  on  top ; and  upon  calling  atten- 
tion to  this  I was  told  these  people  were  from  the  Dio- 
mede Islands,  it  being  the  custom  of  the  men  there  to 
shave  the  top  of  the  head,  and  that  these  people  often 
came  down  the  coast  several  hundred  miles  to  visit  at 
Nome  and  further  down  the  coast. 

Previously  on  the  same  trip,  after  landing  at  Skag- 
way,  we  crossed  over  the  coast  mountains  on  the  Yukon 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


9 


and  White  Pass  Railroad,  and  we  reached  White  Horse, 
on  the  Thirty-mile  River  at  the  foot  of  the  White  Horse 
Rapids,  where  we  took  a steamer  for  Dawson  City,  the 
commercial  and  political  capital  of  the  Yukon  territory, 
and  where  we  remained  about  one  week.  Taking  an- 
other vessel,  we  continued  our  voyage  down  the  great 
Yukon  River  to  Fort  Gibbon,  where  we  changed  to  an- 
other steamer  which  carried  us  to'  St.  Michaels,  in  the 
Bering  Sea,  and  which  is  the  entrepot  for  the  Yukon 
River  country.  There  we  stopped  a few  days  with  the 
family  of  a friend,  Walter  Chidester,  a very  capable  and 
observant  man,  then  the  agent  for  a great  commercial 
concern  in  that  distant  part  of  the  world. 

I had  been  much  interested  in  the  long  voyage  of 
2000  miles  down  the  Yukon  to  observe  what  I could  with 
respect  to  the  native  Indians,  though  not  many  were  to 
be  seen.  As  we  approached  the  sea,  say  for  about  150 
miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  river,  it  was  extremely  in- 
teresting to  me  to  observe  how  the  Indians  gradually 
shaded  off  into  the  Eskimo  type.  The  change  appeared 
in  the  native  garments  especially  in  the  Parka  of  the 
Eskimo,  and  in  the  little  igloos  shaped  like  a beehive 
and  well  known  from  pictures  we  so  often  see. 

Mr.  Childester  informed  me  that  there  were  several 
encampments  of  Eskimos  on  the  sea  shore  near  his 
house,  and  that  these  hardy  natives  came  from  Asia 
along  the  Arctic  Sea,  and  thought  nothing  of  crossing 
Bering’s  straits  and  coming  down  the  coast  of  Alaska, 
a distance  of  500  miles,  on  a kind  of  summer  trip.  Next 
morning  we  went  down  to  view  the  encampment.  The 


10 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


boats  they  came  in  did  not  contain  a piece  of  metal,  and 
doubtless  were  of  the  same  pattern  and  kind  used  from 
the  most  remote  times.  The  boats  were,  according  to 
my  estimate,  some  forty  feet  long,  and  wide  and  deep 
in  proportion  to  the  length.  The  frame  work  consisted 
of  driftwood  lashed  together  with  rawhide,  and  the  sides 
or  hull  was  rough  walrus  rawhide,  and  of  course  entirely 
waterproof. 

On  leaving  their  homes  in  Siberia,  all  they  had  to  do 
was  to  launch  their  boat,  pile  in  it  their  children  and 
dogs  with  such  provisions  and  cooking  utensils  as  they 
had,  and  nothing  remained  except  to  paddle  across  the 
straits,  and  thence  enjoy  as  happy  a voyage  down  the 
coast  as  is  given  to-  the  children  of  nature. 

The  Eskimos  have  the  slanting  eyes  of  the  Japanese 
and  Chinese,  and  are  generally  plump,  very  pleasing  in 
their  demeanor,  and  many  of  them  were  very  good  look- 
ing, some  of  the  women  having  a dignified,  matronly  ap- 
pearance; and  it  was  said  no  Eskimo  was  ever  seen  to 
strike  a child. 

We  arrived  at  Nome  on  Saturday  and  that  night, 
under  the  electric  lights  of  that  outpost  of  civilization, 
the  streets  were  full  of  Eskimos  of  all  sexes  and  ages, 
dressed  in  vari  colored  furs,  and  these  with  miners  and 
prospectors  from  many  parts  of  the  earth,  presented  one 
of  the  most  picturesque  scenes  I ever  looked  upon. 

As  is  well  known  the  Laps  inhabit  the  Northern  Arc- 
tic regions  of  Norway,  Sweden  and  a portion  of  Russia, 
their  country  being  usually  denominated  Lapland. 
While  they  succeeded  in  domesticating  the  reindeer,  still 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


11 


they  have  no  organized  government,  and  owe  allegiance 
to  the  various  countries  in  which  they  live. 

All  ethnologists  agree  that  the  Laps  are  in  no  way 
connected  with  the  Eskimos,  but  are  probably  related  to 
the  Finns,  both  being  a branch  of  the  Asiatic  Mongolian 
race,  about  whose  origin  little  is  known. 

The  best  theory  seems  to  be  that  the  Laps  in  remote 
ages  lived  further  South  and  were  gradually  driven 
North  by  their  more  powerful  neighbors,  and  in  course 
of  time  the  only  asylum  that  could  afford  them  protec- 
tion was  the  frozen  North,  which  accordingly  became 
their  permanent  home. 

On  the  shores  of  Arctic  Asia  the  Eskimos  commence 
and  continue  not  only  across  the  Bering  Straits,  but 
they  inhabit  all  of  the  Northern  shores  and  islands  of 
North  America,  and  extend  as  far  as  Greenland,  which 
is  far  out  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  It  was  once  a question 
how  the  Eskimos  could  get  to  Greenland,  but  it  seems  to 
be  now  well  agreed  that  they  could  cross  on  the  ice,  and 
if  need  be,  aided  by  their  water  craft. 

The  Eskimos  stretch  over  a distance  of  some  thou- 
sands of  miles,  counting  from  those  who  live  in  Asia  on 
eastward  to  Greenland,  the  Arctic  Islands  and  lands  in 
the  far  frozen  North ; and  it  seems  to  be  agreed  that  their 
speech  shows  a common  origin.  No  other  uncivilized 
people  have  ever  been  known  to  inhabit  a country  so  ex- 
tensive in  length,  and  in  all  probability  there  is  no  inter- 
course between  those  separated  by  great  distances.  It 
would  seem,  therefore,  that  the  Eskimos  on  the  Arctic 
shores  of  Asia  were  driven  there  by  their  Mongolian 


12 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


neighbors  in  the  South,  which  finally  became  their  home, 
as  the  Laps  found  a home  on  the  northern  shores  of 
Arctic  Europe.  The  features  of  the  Eskimos  are  of  the 
Mongolian  type  and  I do  not  think  there  can  be  a reason- 
able doubt  that  they  are  of  Mongolian  origin.  It  is  true 
that  they  have  their  peculiar  characteristics,  but  their 
mode  of  life  for  ages  in  the  Arctic  regions,  with  the  in- 
tense struggle  for  existence  peculiar  to  that  life  would 
necessarily  show  variations  from  the  original  type. 

All  the  Eskimos  I have  seen  appeared  to  better  ad- 
vantage both  in  person  and  general  deportment,  as  well 
as  in  the  souvenirs  of  their  own  make  which  they  offered 
for  sale,  than  did  the  Laps  whom  I saw  in  Northern  Nor- 
way in  1912,  on  a visit  we  made  that  year  to  the  North 
Cape,  commonly  called  the  land  of  the  midnight  sun. 

Those  Laps  had  a scrawny,  dirty  appearance,  and 
the  trinkets  offered  for  sale  seemed  to  me  far  inferior 
to  the  handiwork  of  the  Eskimos. 

That  the  Indians  of  North  America  are  either  the 
descendants  of  Eskimos  or  Asiatics  I scarcely  think  is 
doubtful.  While  the  great  Yukon  River  flows  for  the 
most  part  through  a great  plateau,  with  considerable  for- 
ests on  its  banks,  still  these  trees  gradually  fade  away 
into  mere  scrub,  within,  say  100  miles  of  the  mouth  of 
the  river.  The  evident  reason  is  that  trees  can  not  grow 
on  the  desolate  tundras  near  the  sea  precisely  as  no  trees 
are  to  be  found  on  the  shores  of  the  Arctic  Ocean. 

I was  told  that  Eskimos  lived  on  the  desolate  lower 
reaches  of  the  Yukon,  and  in  fact  saw  their  igloos  and 
could  distinguish  them  by  the  parkas  they  wore.  As  is 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


13 


well  known,  Eskimos  depend  upon  the  seals,  the  walrus, 
and  an  occasional  whale,  and  other  denizens  of  the  sea; 
whereas  the  Indian  proper  depends  upon  the  creatures 
of  the  land  for  a subsistence. 

The  struggle  for  existence  in  either  mode  of  life  is 
severe  and  would  necessarily  produce  many  variations 
from  the  original  type. 

All  travelers  report  that  the  greatest  antipathy  exists 
between  Eskimos  and  the  Indians,  who  sometimes  stray 
upon  the  hunting  grounds  of  each  other.  The  Eskimos 
are  often  at  enmity,  the  one  tribe  with  another.  Nothing 
is  better  known  than  that  neighboring  tribes  of  Indians 
were  constantly  at  war,  which  is  the  case  with  practically 
all  uncivilized  peoples,  and  also  the  practice  is  not  un- 
known among  those  nations  who  claim  to  be  the  leaders 
of  civilization. 

It  is  well  known  that  uncivilized  peoples  who  depend 
upon  the  chase  for  sustenance,  are  nearly  always  nomads, 
spending  months  at  a time  on  distant  journeys,  follow- 
ing up  the  game  which  furnishes  them  food  and  raiment. 

How  easy  would  it  be  for  a tribe  forced  up  the 
Yukon  by  its  enemies,  or  which  should  take  a notion  to 
spy  out  a happier  hunting  ground,  to  go  in  their  canoes 
to  the  upper  reaches  of  the  Yukon  in  the  summer  time? 
Here  they  would  find  not  only  an  abundance  of  fish  in 
the  river  and  its  tributaries,  as  well  as  water  fowl,  but 
at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  there  were  to  be  found 
millions  of  caribou  as  well  as  the  lordly  moose,  not  to 
mention  other  game.  It  is  true  the  caribou  migrate  and 
at  times  go  to  the  South,  but  it  is  well  known  that  sav- 


14 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


age  people  follow  migrating  animals,  and  by  following 
these  to  their  winter  homes  it  would  be  but  a short  step 
to  find  the  countless  herds  of  North  American  Buffalo 
or  bison,  which  stretched  from  Arctic  America  to  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico. 

Again  it  is  but  112  miles  from  the  upper  point  of 
navigation  on  the  headwaters  of  the  Yukon,  to  Skagway 
on  the  Pacific  Ocean  where  the  sea  never  freezes  over, 
and  how  easy  would  it  be  for  the  aborigines  to  cross  the 
intervening  range  of  mountains  is  shown  from  the  fact 
that  it  is  now  crossed  on  a railway  train. 

The  Peace  River  country  now  in  British  Columbia, 
though  far  north  has  a comparatively  mild  climate,  ow- 
ing to  the  warm  Chinook  winds  which  blow  over  the 
Japan  currents  of  the  Pacific  and  reach  that  country. 
This  country  would  be  a kind  of  half-way  house  between 
the  Arctic  regions  and  the  warmer  parts  of  the  country 
stretching  toward  the  far  South,  for  migrating  bands  of 
savages. 

In  considering  the  possibility  or  probability  of  the 
settlement  in  America  of  the  Indians,  first  coming  across 
by  way  of  Bering  Straits,  we  should  not  consider  the 
subject  from  the  standpoint  of  a few  hundred  years,  but 
upon  the  assumption  that  in  all  probability  it  took  some 
thousands  of  years  for  the  settlement  of  the  American 
continents. 

Given  sufficient  time  the  dispersion  might  well  cover 
the  whole  continent;  and  as  a climate,  the  productions  of 
the  soil  and  other  conditions  which  make  it  easy  to  sub- 
sist and  give  leisure  for  thought  and  reflection,  have 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


15 


always  been  the  means  by  which  men  have  first  discarded 
savagery  and  laid  the  foundation  stones  for  ultimate 
civilization,  we  can  realize  why  it  was  that  there  once  ex- 
isted in  Peru  and  Mexico  a civilization  unknown  on  the 
North  American  continent. 

The  warm  climate  and  other  favoring  conditions  in 
those  parts  of  America  where  there  once  existed  a pre-. 
historic  civilization,  have  often  been  compared  to  like 
climatic  conditions  in  the  valley  of  the  Nile  and  of  the 
Euphrates  and  Tigris,  where,  so  far  as  we  know,  our 
civilization  had  its  beginning. 

It  may  be  remarked  here  that  the  Natchez  Indians 
who  gave  their  name  to  the  City  of  Natchez  in  Southern 
Mississippi  on  the  banks  of  the  great  river  of  that  name, 
were  the  furtherest  advanced  in  their  form  of  govern- 
ment and  an  organized  society,  than  any  other  tribe  of 
Indians  who  dwelt  within  the  boundaries  of  the  United 
States.  No  doubt  the  warm  climate,  and  favoring  con- 
ditions of  life  were  prime  factors  in  the  elevation  of  this 
unfortunate  people,  who  were  almost  exterminated  by 
the  French,  and  as  we  will  see  the  remnants  of  that  once 
noted  tribe  found  an  asylum  and  a home  among  the  in- 
trepid Chickasaws,  who  haughtily  and  successfully  defied 
all  the  powers  of  the  French  when  they  demanded  the 
surrender  of  the  Natchez  from  the  Chickasaws. 

I have  never  seen  the  ruins  of  South  or  Central 
America  that  have  been  uncovered  and  so  extensively 
written  about  and  photographed,  especially  in  these  later 
years. 


16 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


I passed  on  the  train  near  the  earth  pyramids  not 
far  from  Mexico  City,  and  saw  in  that  city  the  great 
Calendar  stone  and  other  remnants  of  a past  civilization. 
In  the  same  year  (1908)  we  went  down  to  the  State  of 
Oaxaca,  far  south  of  Mexico  City,  to  see  the  ruins  of 
Mitla,  which  are  not  far  distant  from  Oaxaca.  No  one 
can  view  these  ruins  except  with  feelings  of  astonish- 
ment ; and  yet  we  are  told  that  when  Cortez  first  passed 
through  that  country  about  1520,  that  the  half  barbarous 
people  who  lived  near  these  ruins  had  no  more  knowledge 
as  to  who  were  the  builders  of  the  splendid  solid  stone 
edifices  which  once  adorned  that  country,  than  have  the 
half  naked  Indians  we  saw  there. 

Between  the  City  of  Oaxaca  and  the  ruins  of  Mitla 
stands  the  celebrated  Tide  tree,  said  to  be  the  oldest  and 
largest  tree  in  the  world.  It  measured  154  feet  in  cir- 
cumference and  was  of  sufficient  importance  to  attract 
the  attention  of  Alexander  Von  Humboldt,  who  placed  a 
tablet  on  the  tree  commemorative  of  his  visit  (as  I re- 
member) in  1804,  a part  of  which  has  been  covered  by 
new  growth  of  the  tree,  which  still  continues  to  grow. 

It  was  on  this  trip  that  Humboldt  traveled  over 
South  America,  and  thence  northward  up  through  Cen- 
tral America,  Mexico,  and  into  the  United  States.  He 
traveled  over  most  of  the  world,  especially  through  the 
remote  and  uncivilized  countries,  was  learned  in  almost 
every  branch  of  knowledge  and  was  one  of  the  greatest 
intellectualities  of  the  Nineteenth  Century.  Probably 
no  man  was  better  capacitated  to  express  an  opinion  as 
to  the  origin  of  the  American  Indians  than  Humboldt. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


17 


In  Volume  1,  page  13  of  “The  Great  Republic  by 
Master  Historians,”  Humboldt  is  quoted  as  saying: 

“It  appears  most  evident  to  me,  that  the  monu- 
ments, methods  of  computing  time,  systems  of  cos- 
mogony, and  many  myths  of  America,  offer  strik- 
ing analogies  with  the  ideas  of  eastern  Asia — - 
analogies  which  indicate  an  ancient  communication, 
and  are  not  simply  the  result  of  that  uniform  con- 
dition in  which  all  nations  are  found  in  the  dawn  of 
civilization.” 

When  Cortez  with  fire  and  sword  and  a savagery 
rivaling  Attila,  “The  scourge  of  God,”  destroyed  the 
Montezumas  of  Mexico  City,  at  the  same  time  and  under 
the  plea  of  destroying  paganism  and  extending  the  Chris- 
tian religion  he  likewise  destroyed  all  the  records  of  the 
civilization  which  he  found  in  Mexico.  In  all  probability 
the  loss  caused  by  this  destruction,  robbed  mankind  of  the 
only  clue  which  might  have  led  to  a knowledge  of  the 
origin  of  the  American  aborigines. 

In  the  present  state  of  knowledge,  the  conclusion  of 
Humboldt  is  about  all  that  can  now  be  said  with  any  de- 
gree of  certainty,  upon  this  most  interesting  subject. 


18 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


CHAPTER  II. 

AS  TO  THE  ORIGIN  OF  THE  CHICKASAW  NATION. 


As  we  have  seen,  the  origin  of  the  race  of  the 
American  Indian  is  wrapped  in  mystery,  so  likewise  when 
we  endeavor  to  trace  the  early  history  of  the  Chickasaw 
Nation  as  an  integral  part  of  the  Indian  race,  we  will 
likewise  find  that  we  are  without  authentic  history  and 
must  depend  upon  legends  and  traditions  as  our  only 
sources  of  information. 

I am  by  no  means  unmindful  of  the  weakness,  not 
to  say  untrustworthiness,  of  this  kind  of  evidence ; never- 
theless having  no  other,  we  will  briefly  look  to  these 
sources  as  furnishing  some  slight  indication  as  to  the 
earliest  home  of  the  Chickasaws. 

There  are  several  versions  as  to  the  manner  in  which 
the  Chickasaws  reached  their  home  in  what  is  now  North 
Mississippi,  and  there  found  an  abiding  place.  De  Soto 
was  the  first  white  man  to  enter  their  country  in  Decem- 
ber, 1540,  and  there  they  were  again  found  after  the 
lapse  of  more  than  a century,  by  the  first  white  men  who 
explored  their  country. 

It  seems  to  me  that  these  traditions  point  to  Old 
Mexico  as  the  original  home  of  the  Chickasaws. 

I have  referred  to  Adair  as  an  authority  on  Chicka- 
saw history,  and  next  to  him,  I regard  H.  B.  Cushman 
as  probably  the  most  reliable  of  those  who  have  given 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


19 


accounts  of  the  Chickasaws.  Lincecum  is  also  a good 
authority. 

In  1899  Cushman  published  a volume  of  607  pages, 
entitled  “History  of  the  Choctaw,  Chickasaw  and  Nat- 
chez Indians,”  the  Greenville,  Texas,  Headlight  Printing 
House  being  the  publisher,  the  paper  being  very  poor  but 
the  type  good.  I had  difficulty  in  procuring  a copy  of 
the  book,  which  I finally  did  through  the  efforts  of  my 
friend,  W.  W.  Alsobrook,  who  had  resided  many  years 
in  Greenville,  and  who  was  told  by  a niece  of  Cushman 
that  he  died  in  1904. 

Cushman  states  that  his  parents  left  Massachusetts 
in  1820,  and  went  to  the  Choctaw  Indians  as  mission- 
aries, among  whom  they  labored  the  balance  of  their 
lives,  and  died  the  sincere  and  admiring  friends  of  the 
Red  men  of  the  forest ; that  he  was  reared  among  the 
Indians  and  was  intimately  acquainted  with  them  during 
the  vicissitudes  of  a life  extending  to  near  four  score 
of  years ; that  he  had  obtained  in  these  years  a fund 
of  information  not  theretofore  published,  and  he  evi- 
dently deemed  it  a sacred  duty  to  place  it  in  permanent 
form  for  the  benefit  of  posterity,  and  especially  in  jus- 
tice to  the  Indians  whom  he  admired  and  loved  so  much. 

The  wrongs  and  injustices  towards  the  Indians  by 
white  men  evidently  so  oppressed  the  mind  and  sympa- 
thies of  Cushman,  that  throughout  his  lengthy  book  he 
constantly  declaims  against  the  oppressors  of  the  In- 
dians, and  in  this  way  detracts  from  the  value  of  his 
conclusions  as  an  impartial  historian.  However,  his  per- 


20 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


feet  sincerity  and  honesty  of  purpose  in  stating  exactly 
what  he  saw  and  heard,  cannot  be  doubted. 

There  is  no  index  or  even  chapters  to  his  book,  and 
it  would  seem  that  the  one  thought  constantly  with  him 
was  to  put  in  permanent  form  not  only  all  he  knew  about 
the  Choctaws,  Chickasaws  and  Natchez  Indians,  but  to 
weave  into  his  book  what  he  knew  of  other  Indians,  to- 
gether with  his  conclusions  with  respect  to  the  treatment 
of  the  Indians  in  general  by  the  white  men  of  this 
country. 

The  first  414  pages  of  the  book  are  devoted  to  the 
Choctaws;  the  next  115  pages  to  the  Chickasaws,  and 
the  remainder  to  the  Natchez  Indians,  and  various  other 
subjects. 

I have  thus  referred  to  Adair,  Cushman  and  Lince- 
cum,  because  I intend  to  quote  from  them  liberally  as 
authentic  sources  of  information,  which  I do  the  more 
readily  as  the  first  two  are  practically  out  of  the  reach 
of  the  general  reading  public. 


How  the  Indians  Preserved  Historical  Events — 

The  impression  is  general  that  the  Indians  were 
without  any  means  of  recording  matters  of  great  inter- 
est or  import,  and  that  they  depended  entirely  upon 
their  memories  in  transmitting  current  events  to  poster- 
ity, but  Cushman  says  : 

“As  aids  to  memory  they  used  various  devices, 
among  which  belts  of  wampum  were  the  chief. 
Wampum  was  truly  the  archives  of  the  tribe  among 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


21 


all  North  American  Indians.  It  was  made  of 
dressed  deer  skin,  soft  and  pliable  as  cloth,  and 
interwoven  with  various  shells  cut  into  uniform 
size,  carefully  polished,  strung  together  and  painted 
in  different  colors,  all  of  which  were  significant; 
white  being  the  emblem  of  peace  and  friendship ; 
red,  the  symbol  of  hostility  and  war.  As  the  colors 
of  the  wampum  were  significant,  so  also  were  the 
length  and  breadth  of  these  belts,  and  also  the  pecu- 
liar arrangements  of  the  differently  painted  strings 
attached,  each  and  all  fully  understood  by  the  In- 
dians alone.  A belt  of  wampum  was  presented  to 
one  tribe  by  another  as  a remembrance  token  of 
any  important  event  that  was  communicated.  They 
had  many  and  various  kinds  of  wampum ; some  in 
the  form  of  belts  of  different  breadth  and  length ; 
some  in  strings  of  various  width  and  length,  all 
reaching  back  in  regular  order  to  centuries  of  the 
remote  past,  with  an  accuracy  incredible  to  the 
White  Race. 

The  wampum  was  the  Indians’  history,  the 
chronicles  of  the  past;  and  the  leaders  of  each  clan 
of  the  tribe,  from  one  generation  to  another  were 
carefully  and  thoroughly  instructed  by  their  prede- 
cessors for  that  particular  business  and  were  held 
in  the  highest  esteem  by  all  Indians  everywhere. 
* * * 

Pictures,  rudely  carved  on  rocks  and  trees,  were 
used  to  convey  information,  each  figure  being  a 
true  symbol  understood  and  fully  comprehended  by 
the  Indians  wherever  seen”  (See  pages  35-36). 

It  is  evident  that  this  mode  of  recording  current 
events  was  far  from  perfect,  and  was  liable  to  many 
misinterpretations. 


22 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Traditions  of  a Western  Origin — 

All  agree,  however,  that  the  Chickasaws  belonged 
to  the  Muskhogean  family  of  Indians,  the  family  name 
being  spelled  variously,  as  Muscogee,  Muskogee,  Mus- 
khogies,  Muscogulgee,  etc. 

The  principal  nations  composing  the  Muskhogeans 
were  the  Chickasaws,  Choctaws,  Creek  and  Chockchoo- 
mas ; and  the  country  occupied  by  them  extended  from 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico  up  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  then  up  the  Ohio  to  the  dividing  ridge  between 
the  Tennessee  and  Cumberland  Rivers,  and  on  eastward 
to  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  East  Tennessee,  and  the  moun- 
tainous portions  of  Georgia,  Virginia,  and  Kentucky 
were  occupied  by  the  warlike  and  fine  Cherokees,  who 
constituted  a Southern  branch  of  the  Iroquois  Indians, 
whose  main  country  lay  further  north. 

There  were  included  in  the  above  general  descrip- 
tion of  the  Muskhogean  country  many  small  tribes  who 
were  not  Muskhogeans;  such  as  the  noted  Natchez  In- 
dians, the  Biloxis,  Tunicas,  Tensas,  Yazoos,  Koroas  and 
Pascagoulas,  but  the  members  of  these  tribes  were  for 
the  most  part  inconsiderable,  while  the  Muskhogeans 
were  much  larger  and  warlike,  often  fighting  each  other. 

There  appears  to  have  been  a well  defined  tradition 
among  all  the  Muskhogeans,  pointing  to  the  West,  and 
probably  Old  Mexico  as  their  former  home.  It  is  of 
interest  here,  to  recall  that  the  great  Cherokee  Indian, 
Sequoyah,  conceived  the  idea  that  by  tracing  out  some 
common  idioms  in  the  various  Indian  languages,  he  could 
eventually  determine  the  origin  of  the  Cherokees  and 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


23 


other  Indians;  and  in  his  old  age  he  traveled  to  the  far 
West  and  was  overtaken  by  death  at  the  advanced  age 
of  eighty-two,  among  the  mountains  of  Tamaulipas, 
Mexico. 

Adair  says  the  Choctaws  and  Chickasaws  were  the 
descendants  of  a people  called  Chickemacaws ; who  were 
among  the  first  inhabitants  of  the  Mexican  Empire;  and 
at  an  ancient  period  wandered  eastward  with  a tribe  of 
Indians  called  Choccomaws,  and  finally  crossed  the  Miss- 
issippi River  with  ten  thousand  warriors. 

Cushman  supposes  that  the  names  Choctaw  and 
Chickasaw  were  derived  from  the  above  names,  and  says 
that  in  1820  the  aged  Choctaws  related  to  the  mission- 
aries that  their  ancestors  in  a remote  period  dwelt  in 
the  far  West,  and  being  conquered  and  oppressed  by  a 
more  powerful  people,  resolved  to  seek  a new  country, 
going  to  the  East. 

A great  council  of  the  whole  nation  was  called, 
and  after  great  deliberation  and  much  discussion,  the 
nation  started  forth  under  the  leadership  of  two  broth- 
ers, Chahtah  and  Chikasah,  both  equally  renowned  for 
their  bravery  in  war  and  their  wisdom  in  council. 

After  much  prayer  and  supplication,  the  Great 
Spirit  had  revealed  to  their  chief  medicine  men  and 
prophets  that  they  should  erect  a pole  (Fa-bus-sah  in 
their  language)  in  the  midst  of  their  camp  standing 
straight  up,  and  that  each  morning  they  should  care- 
fully observe  the  way  it  leaned  and  follow  in  that  direc- 
tion, and  the  first  morning  as  it  leant  to  the  east  they 
started  on  their  long  journey  toward  the  rising  sun. 


24 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Each  night  the  pole  was  set  up  in  the  midst  of 
the  camp,  alternately  by  the  brothers,  Chahtah  and  Chik- 
asah,  and  each  morning  it  still  pointed  to  the  east,  and 
for  months  they  passed  over  plains,  mountains  and 
through  forests,  much  of  the  country  abounding  in  game 
and  inviting  the  pilgrims  to  settle  there,  but  the  talis- 
manic  pole  continued  to  point  eastward  and  the  nation 
followed  its  silent  admonitions. 

Says  Cushman : 

“After  many  months  of  wearisome  travel,  sud- 
denly a vast  body  of  flowing  water  stretched  its 
mighty  arm  athwart  in  their  path.  With  unfeigned 
astonishment  they  gathered  in  groups  upon  its  banks 
and  gazed  upon  its  turbid  waters.  Never  before 
had  they  even  heard  of,  or  in  all  their  wanderings 
stumbled  upon  aught  like  this.  Whence  its  origin? 
Where  its  terminus  ? This  is  surely  the  Great 
Father  the  true  source  of  all  waters,  whose  age 
is  wrapt  in  the  silence  of  the  unknown  past,  ages 
beyond  all  calculation,  and  as  they  then  and  there 
named  it  ‘Misha  Sipokni’  (Beyond  Age,  whose 
source  and  terminus  are  unknown).  * * * Is 

Misha  Sipokni  to  be  the  terminus  of  their  toils? 
Are  the  illimitable  forests  that  so  lovingly  embraced 
in  their  wide  extended  arms  its  restless  waters  to 
be  their  future  homes?  Not  so.  Silent  and  mo- 
tionless, still  as  ever  before,  it  bows  to  the  east  and 
its  mandate,  ‘Onward,  beyond  Misha  Sipokni,’  is 
accepted  without  a murmur ; and  at  once  they  pro- 
ceed to  construct  canoes  and  rafts  by  which,  in  a 
few  weeks,  all  were  safely  landed  upon  its  eastern 
banks,  whence  again  was  resumed  their  eastward 
march,  and  so  continued  until  they  stood  upon  the 
western  banks  of  the  Yazoo  River  and  once  more 
encamped  for  the  night ; and,  as  had  been  done  for 
many  months  before,  ere  evening  began  to  unfold 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


25 


her  curtains,  and  twilight  had  spread  o’er  all,  her 
mystic  light,  the  Fabussa  (now  truly  their  Delphian 
oracle)  was  set  up;  but  ere  the  morrow’s  sun  had 
plainly  lit  up  the  eastern  horizon,  many  anx- 
iously watching  eyes  that  early  rested  upon  its 
straight,  slender,  silent  form,  observed  it  stood  erect 
as  when  set  up  the  evening  before,  and  then  was 
borne  upon  the  morning  breeze  throughout  the  vast 
sleeping  encampment,  the  joyful  acclamation!  ‘Fo- 
hah  hupishno  Yak!  Fohah  hupishno  Yak!'  (Pro. 
as  Fo-hah,  Rest,  hup-ish-noh,  we,  all  of  us,  Yak, 
here). 

Now  their  weary  pilgrimage  was  ended,  and 
flattering  hope  portrayed  their  future  destiny  in 
the  bright  colors  of  peace,  prosperity  and  happi- 
ness. Then  as  commemorative  of  this  great  event 
in  their  national  history,  they  threw  up  a large 
mound  embracing  three  acres  of  land  and  rising 
forty  feet  in  a conical  form,  with  a deep  hole  about 
ten  feet  in  diameter  excavated  on  the  top,  and  all 
enclosed  by  a ditch  encompassing  nearly  twenty 
acres.  After  its  completion,  it  was  discovered  not 
to  be  erect,  but  a little  leaning,  and  they  named  it 
Nunih  (mountain  or  mound,  Waiyah,  leaning,  pro. 
as  Nunih  Wai-yah). 

This  relic  of  the  remote  past  still  stands  half 
buried  in  the  accummulated  rubbish  of  years  un- 
known, disfigured  also  by  the  desecrating  touch  of 
Time,  which  has  plainly  left  his  finger-marks  of 
decay  upon  it,  blotting  out  its  history,  with  all  oth- 
ers of  its  kind,  those  memorials  of  ages  past  erected 
by  the  true  Native  American,  about  which  so  much 
has  been  said  in  conjecture,  and  so  much  written 
in  speculation,  that  all  now  naturally  turn  to  any- 
thing from  their  modern  conjectures  and  specula- 
tions with  much  doubt  and  great  misgivings”  (See 
pages  64-65). 


26 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Some  years  afterwards,  Chahtah  and  Chikasah  dis- 
agreed on  some  question  of  state,  and  decided  to  sepa- 
rate with  their  respective  followers,  the  choice  of  the 
countries  to  be  decided  by  a game  of  chance,  with  the 
result  that  the  northern  part  of  the  country  fell  to  Chik- 
asah and  his  people,  while  the  southern  part  fell  to  Chah- 
tah and  his  followers. 


Did  the  Separation  Take  Place  in  the  West — 

Dr.  Gideon  Lincecum  lived  among  the  Choctaws 
for  years  and  spoke  their  language  fluently,  and  his  auto- 
biography will  be  found  in  VIII  Publications,  Mississippi 
Historical  Society  Papers,  at  page  443;  and  at  page  521 
of  the  same  volume  there  is  an  interesting  account  by 
Dr.  Lincecum  of  the  Choctaw  traditions  about  their  set- 
tlement in  Mississippi,  and  the  origin  of  their  mounds, 
the  account  extending  to  page  542. 

On  page  543  of  the  same  volume,  Harry  War- 
ren also  has  an  interesting  article  on  “Chickasaw  Tra- 
ditions, Customs,  etc.”  While  differing  as  to  some  of 
the  details,  still  the  accounts  given  by  these  three  authors, 
and  also  that  of  Schoolcraft,  as  quoted  by  Warren,  agree 
in  the  main,  one  important  exception  being  that,  accord- 
ing to  Lincecum,  the  separation  between  Chahtah  and 
Chikasah  took  place  long  before  they  reached  their  new 
home,  for  he  says : 

“About  thirty  winters  after  they  had  stopped 
at  Nunih  Waya,  a party  of  hunters  who  had  pro- 
gressed a little  further  north  than  usual,  fell  in  with 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


27 


a camp  of  hunters  belonging  to  the  Chickasha 
tribe.  After  finding  that  they  spoke  the  same  lan- 
guage with  themselves,  the  Chahtahs  approached 
their  camp  in  a friendly  manner,  and  remained  sev- 
eral days.  The  older  men  amongst  them  being 
familiar  with  the  traditional  history  of  the  journey- 
ings  of  their  respective  tribes,  took  much  pleasure 
in  communicating  to  each  other  an  account  of  their 
travels.  From  the  point  where  the  two  tribes  sep- 
arated, the  Chickashas  diverged  widely  to  the  left, 
found  an  extremely  rough  and  scarce  country  for 
some  time,  but  at  last  emerging  from  the  mountains 
on  to  the  wide  spread  plains,  they  found  the  buffalo 
and  other  game  plentiful.  They  continued  to  travel, 
with  only  an  occasional  halt,  to  rest  the  women 
and  the  feeble  ones,  until  they  came  to  the  great 
river,  at  the  place  called  by  them  sakti  ahlopulli 
(bluff  crossing) — ‘white  people  call  it  now  Chicka- 
saw Bluffs,’  said  the  old  man:  They  made  shift 
to  cross  the  great  river,  and  traveling  onward,  the 
leader’s  pole  came  to  a stand  at  a place  called  Chick- 
asha Old  Town  in  a high  and  beautiful  country. 
The  leader’s  pole  stood  at  this  place  three  winters, 
at  the  end  of  which  time  the  pole  was  found  lean- 
ing to  the  northeast.  They  set  out  again  and  crossed 
another  big  river  (little  prairie  near  Huntsville, 
Ala.).  The  pole  remained  there  erect  only  one 
winter.  At  mulberry  time  the  ensuing  summer,  the 
pole  was  found  leaning  almost  directly  to  the  south. 
They  packed  up,  and  crossing  many  bold  running 
rivers,  the  pole  still  leaning  onward,  until  they  came 
to  a large  river,  near  where  it  emptied  into  the  great 
okhuta  (ocean). 

At  this  beautiftd  country  (below  where  Savan- 
nah, Georgia,  now  stands),  the  pole  stood  erect 
many  winters.  The  fish,  opa  haksum,  oko  folush 
(oysters,  clams)  and  all  manner  of  shell  fish  and 
fowl  and  small  game  were  plentiful.  The  people 
obtained  full  supplies  of  provisions  with  but  little 


28 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


labor.  In  the  process  of  time,  however,  the  people 
became  sickly,  and  they  were  visited  with  a very 
great  plague.  They  called  the  plague  hoita  lusa 
(black  vomit)  because  the  people  died,  vomiting 
black  matter,  resembling  powdered  fire  coals  and  fish 
slime.  All  that  took  it  were  sick  but  a day  or  two 
and  died  so  fast  that  the  people  became  frightened 
and  ran  off,  leaving  great  numbers  of  the  dead 
unburied.  They  followed  the  leader’s  pole  back 
nearly  over  the  same  route  they  went,  until  finally 
they  returned  to  the  place  where  the  pole  made  its 
first  stand  (Chickasha  Old  Towns).  Here  it  stood 
again,  and  remained  erect  until  it  rotted.”  (See 
pp.  539-540.) 


There  are  other  evidences  that  the  Chickasaws  once 
lived  near  where  Savannah,  Georgia,  now  is,  and  the 
sea  coast,  and  it  is  a fact  that  they  laid  claim  to  a 
scope  of  country  in  that  vicinity  before  Congress  as  late 
as  1795. 

It  is  also  true  that  the  Chickasaws,  or  a part  of 
them,  once  lived  at  the  Mussel  Shoals,  now  in  North 
Alabama,  a fact  stated  by  Piomingo  at  the  Great  Con- 
ference in  Nashville  in  1792,  in  giving  the  boundaries 
of  the  Chickasaw  country. 

There  is  one  other  interesting  feature  of  the  above 
quotation  from  Lincecum,  and  that  is,  that  the  Chicka- 
saws first  crossed  the  great  river  at  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs, 
presumably  where  Memphis  now  stands. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


29 


The  Indians  Were  the  Mound  Builders — 

There  is  one  feature  of  the  migration  legends  treated 
at  length  by  Lincecum  that  seems  to  have  been  overlooked 
or  not  treated  by  Cushman ; and  that  is  the  bringing  by 
the  Indians  of  vast  quantities  of  the  bones  of  their  de- 
ceased ancestors  to  their  new  home. 

According  to  Lincecum,  who  claimed  to  have  de- 
rived all  of  his  information  from  the  wise  men  of  the 
Choctaws,  the  migration  covered  a period  of  forty-three 
years,  and  the  people  were  loaded  down  with  the  bones 
of  their  ancestors  to  such  an  extent  as  to  make  further 
progress  almost  impossible. 

A safe  depository  for  the  repose  of  these  bones 
was  one  of  the  chief  reasons  for  building  the  great  mound 
in  their  new  home,  as  well  as  to-  raise  a monument  to 
their  triumphant  march  and  successful  settlement  towards 
the  rising  sun. 

Commencing  at  page  529,  Lincecum  says : 

“Men  were  then  appointed  to  select  an  appro- 
priate place  for  the  mound  to  be  erected  on,  and  to 
direct  the  work  while  in  progress.  They  selected  a 
level  piece  of  sandy  land,  not  far  from  the  middle 
creek;  laid  it  off  in  an  oblong  square  and  raised 
the  foundation  by  piling  up  earth  which  they  dug  up 
some  distance  to  the  north  of  the  foundation.  It 
was  raised  and  made  level  as  high  as  a man’s  head 
and  beat  down  very  hard.  It  was  then  floored  with 
cypress  bark  before  the  work  of  placing  the  sacks  of 
bones  commenced.  The  people  gladly  brought  for- 
ward and  deposited  their  bones  until  there  were  none 
left.  The  bones,  of  themselves,  had  built  up  an  im 
mense  mound.  They  brought  the  cypress  bark, 
which  was  neatly  placed  on,  till  the  bone  sacks  were 
all  closely  covered  in,  as  dry  as  a tent.  While  the 
tool  carriers  were  working  with  the  bark,  womer 


30 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


and  children  and  all  the  men,  except  the  hunters, 
carried  earth  continually,  until  the  bark  was  all  cov- 
ered from  sight  constituting  a mound  half  as  high  as 
the  tallest  forest  tree.”  (See  pages  529-530.) 

In  a note  to  page  530,  he  says  : 

“I  visited  this  celebrated  mound  in  1843.  T 
found  it  rounded  off,  oblong  square,  200  yards  in 
circumference  at  its  base;  80  feet  in  height,  with 
a flat  space  on  the  top  52  yards  in  length  by  25 
yards  in  width,  the  whole  mound  was  thickly  set 
with  large  forest  trees,  200  yards  to  the  north  of  it 
is  a lake,  which  I suppose  to  be  the  place  whence  they 
carried  the  earth  to  construct  the  mound.” 


Lincecum  further  set  forth  that  he  further  learned 
that  in  the  remote  past,  the  Chickasaws  were  threaten- 
ing an  invasion  of  the  Choctaw  country,  when  a great 
council  was  called,  which  resolved  to  and  did  build  a 
great  wall  around  their  two  principal  mounds,  and  also 
enclosing  a space  sufficient  to  contain  all  the  women  and 
children,  as  well  as  the  aged  and  infirm,  in  case  they 
were  besieged.  The  wall  was  built  of  the  height  of  two 
men,  and  had  in  it  only  two  openings,  one  on  the  east 
and  the  other  on  the  west,  of  five  steps  each  in  width 
for  the  egress  and  ingress  of  the  people  until  Nunih 
Waya  should  be  actually  invaded  by  the  enemy. 

In  a note  to  page  542  Lincecum  says : 

“I  went  all  around  this  earth  wall  in  1843.  It 
seemed  to  be  a complete  circle,  and  from  one  and 
a half  to  two  miles  in  circumference,  the  southeast- 
ern portion  cutting  the  bluff  of  Nunih  Waya  creek. 
Many  places  in  the  wall  were  still  eight  feet  in 
height.  The  two  gaps  in  the  wall  had  never  been 
filled  up.” 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


31 


Both  Cushman  and  Lincecum  attest  that  even  in 
their  day  there  were  professional  bone  pickers,  whose 
duties  consisted  in  removing  all  the  flesh  of  deceased 
Choctaws  from  the  bones,  which  were  carefully  and  re- 
ligiously stored  away  in  mounds,  or  rather,  they  were 
laid  away  in  the  Common  Mausoleum  of  the  Choctaws, 
each  addition  being  carefully  covered  with  earth  until 
the  mounds  often  reached  large  proportions. 

Quoting  his  Choctaw  informant,  Lincecum  says: 

“Now  my  white  friend,  I have  explained  to 
you  the  origin,  and  who  it  was  that  built  the  great 
number  of  mounds  that  are  found  scattered  over 
this  wide  land.  The  circular  conic  mounds  are  al1 
graves,  and  mark  the  spot  where  the  persons,  for 
whom  they  were  built,  breathed  their  last  breath. 

There  being  no  bone  pickers  at  the  hunting  camps 
to  handle  the  dead,  the  body  was  never  touched,  or 
moved  from  the  death  posture.  Just  as  it  lay,  or 
sat,  as  the  case  might  be,  it  was  covered  up,  first 
with  either  stones,  pebbles  or  sand,  and  finished  off 
with  earth.  In  this  way  the  custom  of  mound 
graves  originated  from  the  great  mound  graves, 
Nunih  Waya,  and  it  prevailed  with  the  Choctaw 
people  until  the  white  man  came  with  his  destruc- 
tive sense-killing  ‘fire  water’  and  made  the  people 
all  drunk.”  (See  pp.  533-534.) 


Of  course  there  were  other  structures  erected  for  de- 
fensive and  war  like  purposes,  such  as  the  construction 
of  the  wall  described  by  Lincecum. 


Traditions  Also  Point  to  an  Asiatic  Origin — 

I will  here  quote  at  large  from  Cushman,  which  in- 
dicates an  Asiatic  origin  for  the  Chickasaws,  according  to 
tradition,  as  follows : 


32 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


“The  ancient  traditions . of  the  Cherckees,  as 
well  as  the  ancient  traditions  of  the  Muscogees 
(Creeks)  and  the  Natchez  also  point  back  to  Mex- 
ico as  the  country  from  which  they,  in  a period  long 
past,  moved  to  their  ancient  possessions  east  of  the 
Mississippi  River.  But  whether  they  preceded  the 
Choctaws  and  Chickasaws  or  came  after,  their  tra- 
ditions are  silent. 

Milfort  (page  269)  says:  Big  Warrior,  Chief 
of  the  Cherokees,  as  late  as  1822,  not  only  confirms 
their  traditions  that  Mexico  was  their  native  coun- 
try, but  goes  back  to  a more  remote  period  for  their 
origin  and  claims  that  his  ancestors  came  from  Asia 
crossing  Behring  Straits  in  their  canoes ; thence 
down  the  Pacific  Coast  to  Mexico;  thence  to  the 
country  east  of  the  Mississippi  River,  where  they 
were  first  known  to  the  Europeans. 

Mr.  Gaines,  United  States  Agent  to  the  Choc- 
taws in  1810,  asked  Apushamatahaubi  (pro.  Ar- 
push-ah-ma-tar-hah-ub-ih)  the  most  renowned  chief 
of  the  Choctaws  since  their  acquaintance  with  the 
white  race,  concerning  the  origin  of  his  people,  whc 
replied  : ‘A  hattaktikba  bushi-aioktulla  hosh  hopaki 
fehna  moma  ka  minti’  (Pro.  as  Arn  (my)  hut-tark- 
tik-ba  (forefather)  hush-ih  ai-o-kah-tullah  (the 
west,  mo-mah  (all)  meen-tih  (came)  ho-par-kih 
(far)  feh-nah  (very)  ). 

And  the  same  response  was  always  given  by  all 
the  ancient  Choctaws  living  east  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  when  the  inquiry  was  made  of  them,  Whence 
their  origin?  By  this  they  only  referred  to  the 
country  in  which  their  forefathers  long  dwelt  prior 
to  their  exodus  to  the  east  of  the  Mississippi  River; 
as  they  also  had  a tradition  that  their  forefather? 
came  from  a country  beyond  the  ‘Big  Waters’  far 
to  the  northwest,  crossing  a large  body  of  water  in 
their  canoes  of  a day’s  travel,  thence  down  the  Pa- 
cific coast  to  Mexico,  the  same  as  the  Cherokees. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


33 


In  conversation  with  an  aged  Choctaw  in  the 
year  1884  (Robert  Nail,  a long  known  friend), 
upon  the  subject,  he  confirmed  the  tradition  by  stat- 
ing that  his  people  came  first  from  Asia  by  way  of 
the  Behring  Straits.  He  was  a man  well  versed  in 
geography,  being  taught  in  boyhood  by  the  mission- 
aries prior  to  their  removal  from  their  eastern 
homes  to  their  present  abode  north  of  Texas.  The 
Muscogees,  Shawnees,  Delawares,  Chippeways  and 
other  tribes  also  have  the  same  traditions  pointing 
beyond  Behring  Straits  to  Asia  as  the  land  whence 
their  forefathers  came  in  ages  past.  Some  of  their 
traditions  state  that  they  crossed  the  Strait  on  the 
ice,  the  Chippeways  for  one,  but  the  most,  accord- 
ing to  their  traditions,  crossed  in  their  canoes.  But 
that  the  ancestors  of  the  North  American  Indians 
came  at  some  unknown  period  in  the  remote  past 
from  Asia  to  the  North  American  Continent,  there 
can  be  no  doubt.”  (See  pp.  66-67.) 


Conclusion — 

From  the  foregoing,  I think  it  may  be  safely  con- 
cluded that  the  Chickasaws,  Choctaws,  and  in  fact  the 
entire  Muskhogean  family,  in  remote  times  came  to  the 
country  now  comprising  the  Gulf  States  and  reaching 
to  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  from  the  far  west,  and  in  all 
probability  from  what  is  now  the  Mexican  Republic,  and 
more  remotely  from  Asia. 

The  legends  and  traditions  to  this  effect  had  become 
a part  of  the  religious  history  of  the  Indians.  The  wan- 
derings of  the  Indians  under  the  leadership  of  Chahtah 
and  Chickasah  in  quest  of  a new  home,  and  their  many 
privations  and  sufferings,  was  not  only  as  real,  but  as 
sacred  to  them,  and  as  of  as  deep  a religious  significa- 
tion, as  is  the  forty  years  of  wandering  in  the  wilderness 


34 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


of  the  Jews  under  Moses  and  Joshua,  to  the  Israelites 
and  the  Christian  world  at  the  present  time. 

A great  national  event  of  such  a character  sinks  deep 
into  the  consciousness  of  a people  and  will  persist  through 
ages. 

In  addition  to  the  wampum  device,  already  noticed, 
for  the  preservation  of  historical  facts,  it  was  the  custom 
of  the  Chickasaws  and  Choctaws  to  select,  say,  about 
twenty  youths  of  each  generation,  who  were  carefully  in- 
structed by  their  wise  men  in  their  past  history  as  well 
as  in  all  things  deemed  advisable  for  the  public  well 
being. 

If  it  be  said  that  there  are  too  many  variations  or 
differences  in  the  traditions  so  handed  down  from  genera- 
tion to  generation,  then  it  may  be  truly  replied  that  such 
variations  are  inseparable  attendants  upon  all  efforts  to 
preserve  records  of  past  events. 

Thus,  the  four  gospels  recording  the  life  and  teach- 
ings of  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  vary  in  many  particulars, 
although  he  spoke  as  never  man  spake.  However,  taken 
as  a whole,  the  gospels  are  complete. 

While  Indian  traditions  fall  in  rank  far  below  the 
written  history  of  any  civilized  people,  still  my  conclu- 
sion is  as  indicated  above. 

The  suggestion  of  Cushman  that  the  Muskhogeans 
were  driven  from  Mexico  by  the  fire  and  sword  of  the 
marauder  Cortez,  is  entirely  untenable,  when  we  reflect 
that  the  expedition  of  De  Soto  was  only  some  twenty 
years  later  than  that  of  Cortez ; and  that  when  De  Soto 
passed  the  winter  of  1540-1541  with  the  Chickasaws, 
they  appear  to  have  been  well  seated  at  their  homes,  and 
there  was  nothing  to  indicate  that  they  had  recently  been 
driven  from  Mexico. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


35 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  DAWN  OF  HISTORY  FOR  THE  CHICKASAWS. 


The  sixteenth  century  opened  with  the  dawn  of 
brighter  days  for  civilized  man  throughout  the  world. 
A new  world  had  been  discovered,  a quickening  impulse 
had  been  given  to  art,  science  was  awakening,  and  the 
diffusion  of  knowledge  becoming  more  general,  the 
renaissance  was  flowering  into  a fuller  fruition.  The 
shackles  of  ignorance  and  superstition  which  had 
bound  the  minds  and  hearts  of  mankind,  with  far  more 
rigor  and  cruelty  than  the  iron  which  bound  their  bodies, 
were  being  gradually  unloosened;  still  centuries  were  to 
elapse  before  men  were  to  be  indeed  really  free,  a con- 
summation not  even  yet  fully  realized. 

The  spirit  of  adventure  and  discovery,  like  a young 
Hercules,  was  rejoicing  in  its  vigor  and  achievements. 

Soon  Pizarro  in  Peru,  Pedrarias  in  Central  America 
and  Cortez  in  Mexico  had  overrun  and  devastated  these 
countries;  and  returning  to  Spain  brought  enormous 
wealth,  which  excited  the  imagination,  and  it  may  be 
added  the  cupidity  of  mankind. 

There  had  been  born  in  Xerez  (otherwise  Jerez),  in 
Spain,  of  a noble  family,  but  without  fortune,  a boy 
named  Hernandez,  sometimes  written  Fernandez,  and 
which  is  the  equivalent  for  the  English  Hernando.  It 
appears  he  lived  at  a place  in  Spain  called  Soto,  and 
following  the  customs  of  those  days  he  was,  in  after 


36 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


years,  called  Hernando  De  Soto ; that  is  Hernando  of 
Soto.  He  possessed  talents  more  valuable  than  wealth, 
having  a clear  and  vigorous  understanding,  a quick 
apprehension,  and  courage  of  the  highest  order,  which 
made  him  a born  ruler  of  men.  He  enlisted  as  a soldier 
of  fortune  in  the  Peru  and  Central  American  Expedi- 
tions; was  a captain  in  Nicaragua,  lieutenant-general  in 
the  conquest  of  Peru,  and  returning  to  Spain  it  is  reported 
he  brought  with  him,  as  his  part  of  the  spoils,  one  hun- 
dred thousand  peso  de  oro,  equivalent  to  about  three  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars,  an  almost  incredible  fortune  for 
those  days. 

He  was  liberal  and  lavish  of  his  wealth,  lending  a 
large  sum  to  the  Emporer,  and  drew  around  him  many 
of  the  most  daring  and  ablest  young  noblemen  and  adven- 
turers, some  of  them  also  of  great  wealth. 

Being  now  in  the  vigor  of  life  De  Soto  appears  to 
have  resided  in  Xerez,  and  at  court,  probably,  he  met 
the  widow  of  Pedrarias,  with  whom  he  had  been  ac- 
quainted in  Nicaragua,  first  cousin  to  the  celebrated 
Marchioness  of  Moya,  lady  of  honor  and  life-long 
favorite  of  Ysabel  of  Castilla.  With  her  he  contracted 
for  a love  marriage  with  her  daughter,  named  after  her, 
Ysabel  de  Bobadilla,  and  De  Soto  sent  her  a wedding 
soft  of  six  thousand  ducats. 

As  showing  the  devotion  of  the  young  wife,  it  may 
be  remarked,  that  she  accompanied  De  Soto  on  his  ill- 
fated  expedition  to  Florida  as  far  as  Cuba ; that  after 
waiting  in  vain  for  three  years  in  expectancy  of  a happy 
reunion,  she  died  of  a broken  heart  in  three  days  after 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


37 


hearing  of  the  death  of  her  Lord,  in  the  wilds  of  Amer- 
ica, and  his  burial  in  the  great  Mississippi  River,  which 
is  inseparably  linked  with  his  name. 


Having  achieved  his  highest  ambitions  in  the  land 
ot  his  nativity  De  Soto  looked  with  longing  eyes  again 
to  the  new  world,  and  dreamed  of  the  acquisition  of  still 
greater  wealth  and  the  building  of  a new  empire  in  Flor- 
ida, a name  denoting  a vast  and  unexplored  country, 
of  indeterminate  boundaries,  co-extensive,  probably  with 
one-half  of  the  North  American  Continent. 

In  Florida  Ponce  de  Leon  had  sought  in  vain  for 
the  fountain  of  youth,  finding  instead  his  own  grave. 

Soon  thereafter  Cabeca  de  Vaca  returned  from 
Florida,  stating  that  he  and  four  others  were  the  only 
survivors  of  the  armament  sent  out  under  the  command 
of  Panfilo  de  Narvaez  to  whom  the  “island  of  Florida,’’ 
and  the  adjacent  country  had  been  granted,  upon  his  suc- 
cessful exploring  and  subduing  the  same. 

Like  Ponce  de  Leon,  de  Narvaez  found  death,  in  his 
attempted  subjugation  of  Florida;  but  these  failures  but 
fired  the  imagination  and  strengthened  the  purpose  of 
De  Soto  to  achieve  the  conquest  of  Florida. 

The  details  of  this  great  enterprise  is  outside  the 
scope  of  this  sketch.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  in  considera- 
tion of  the  fitting  out  of  an  armament  and  the  conquest 
and  colonization  of  Florida,  the  Emperor  was  to  grant 
many  concessions  to  De  Soto,  who  was  then  made  Gov- 
ernor of  Florida,  and  when  successful  in  his  enterprise 


38 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


he  was  to  be  Governor  and  Captain-General,  with  the 
dignity  of  Adelantado  for  life,  and  High  Sheriff  in  per- 
petuity to  his  heirs,  over  a part  of  the  conquered  country. 

De  Soto  Lands  in  Florida — 

On  Friday,  May  30,  1539,  De  Soto  disembarked  his 
expeditionary  force  which  consisted,  according  to  Bied- 
ma,  of  six  hundred  and  twenty  men,  two  hundred  and 
twenty-three  horses,  besides  many  hogs,  and  equipments 
necessary  for  such  an  extensive  expedition,  the  landing 
being  made  in  the  vicinity  of  the  present  Tampa,  Florida. 

Quite  soon  after  the  expedition  began  its  journey  it 
was  so  fortunate  as  to  find  with  the  Indians  a Spaniard 
named  Juan  Ortiz,  who  had  been  captured  nine  years 
before  while  a member  of  the  Narvaez  expedition.  He 
was  entirely  naked,  brown  and  in  appearance  an  Indian, 
speaking  their  language  fluently,  which  made  him  almost 
invaluable  as  an  interpreter.  His  duplicity  when  the  ex- 
pedition reached  the  country  of  the  Chickasaws  was  one 
of  the  causes  that  came  near  destroying  the  entire  army. 

The  one  thing  that  led  the  expedition  ever  onward, 
further  and  further,  was  the  expectation  of  finding  gold 
and  silver  and  other  treasures;  in  short  they  were  seek- 
ing a new  El  Dorado. 

They  had  only  gone  a few  leagues  on  their  journey 
when  they  came  to  the  Province  of  Paracoxi,  and  the 
Gentlemen  of  Elvas  says : 

“They  were  asked  if  they  had  knowledge,  or 
information  of  any  country  where  gold  and  silver 
might  be  found  in  plenty;  to  which  they  answered 
yes;  that  towards  the  sunset  was  a Province  called 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


39 


Cale,  the  inhabitants  of  which  were  at  war  with 
those  of  territories  where  the  greater  portion  of 
the  year  was  summer,  and  where  there  was  so  much 
gold,  that  when  the  people  came  to  make  war  upon 
those  of  Cale,  they  wore  golden  hats  like  casques. 

As  the  Cacique  had  not  come,  Gallegos,  reflect- 
ing, suspected  the  message  designed  for  delay,  that 
he  might  put  himself  in  a condition  of  safety;  and 
fearing  that,  if  those  men  were  suffered  to  depart, 
they  might  never  return,  he  ordered  them  to  be 
chained  together,  and  sent  the  news  to  camp  by 
eight  men  on  horseback.  The  governor,  hearing 
what  had  passed,  showed  great  pleasure,  as  did  the 
rest  who  were  with  him,  believing  what  the  Indians 
said  might  be  true.” 

This  naive  statement  of  the  untutored  Red  men  fur- 
nishes an  example  of  the  manner  in  which  the  Indians 
sought  to  get  rid  of  their  unwelcome  visitors ; or  in  the 
lingo  of  the  cantonments  in  these  war  times,  they  were 
simply  “passing  the  buck,”  to  De  Soto  and  his  men. 

From  the  four  narratives  it  is  next  to  impossible  to 
mark  out  with  any  degree  of  precision  the  route  followed 
by  De  Soto  in  his  wanderings ; but  it  is  reasonably  cer- 
tain, speaking  in  present  day  geographical  terms,  that  he 
passed  northward  from  Florida  into  Georgia  and  pos- 
sibly into  South  Carolina ; thence  northwest,  and  in  cross- 
ing upper  Georgia,  De  Soto  sent  two  Spaniards  with 
Indians,  northward  to  the  Province  of  Chisca,  for  he  was 
told  by  the  Cacique  of  Acoste  that  in  the  Province  of 
Chisca  there  was  a forge 

“for  copper  or  other  metal  of  that  color,  though 
brighter,  having  a much  finer  hue,  and  was  to  ap- 
pearances much  better,  but  was  not  so  much  used 


40 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


for  being  softer;  which  was  the  statement  that  had 
been  given  in  Cutifachiqui,  where  we  had  seen  some 
chopping-knives  that  were  said  to  have  a mixture 
of  gold”  (Elvas,  p.  77). 

It  is  generally  agreed  that  this  Chisca  was  in  Ten- 
nessee ; but  it  was  not  in  Middle  Tennessee  where  the  map 
Bourne  attached  to  Vol.  2 of  his  Trail  Makers,  places  it. 
The  pioneers  in  East  Tennessee  found  near  what  is  now 
Ducktown,  in  Polk  County,  an  extremely  rich  copper  dis- 
trict, which  for  years  and  now  is  being  worked  with  great 
profit.  Of  course  no  gold  was  found,  a fact  not  referred 
to  by  the  two  Spaniards,  though  they  did  report  that  the 
mountains  were  so  high,  “it  was  impossible  the  army 
should  march  in  that  direction” ; and  the  same  mountains 
stand  this  day  barring  the  approach  to  the  copper  district 
from  the  south,  precisely  as  they  did  to  the  army  of  De 
Soto,  now  near  four  hundred  years  ago. 

Thr;  expedition  then  went  southwestward  until  it 
came  to  Manilla,  near  where  Mobile,  Alabama,  now  is ; 
and  there  a great  battle  with  the  Indians  was  fought.  It 
was  the  most  disastrous  to  the  expedition  up  to  that  time, 
the  results  of  which  are  stated  by  Elvas : 

“They  who  perished  there  were  in  all  two  thou- 
sand five  hundred,  a few  more  or  less ; of  the  Chris- 
tians there  fell  eighteen,  among  whom  was  Don 
Carlos,  brother-in-law  of  the  governor;  one  Juan 
de  Gamez,  a nephew;  Men,  Rodriguez,  a Portu- 
guese; and  Juan  Vazquez,  of  Villanueva  de  Bar- 
carota,  men  of  condition  and  courage ; the  rest  were 
infantry.  Of  the  living,  one  hundred  and  fifty 
Christians  had  received  seven  hundred  wounds  from 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


41 


the  arrow;  and  God  was  pleased  that  they  should 
be  healed  in  little  time  of  very  dangerous  injuries. 
Twelve  horses  died,  and  seventy  were  hurt.  The 
clothing  the  Christians  carried  with  them,  the  orna- 
ments for  saying  mass,  and  the  pearls,  were  burned 
there;  they  having  set  the  fire  themselves,  because 
they  considered  the  loss  less  than  the  injury  they 
might  receive  of  the  Indians  from  within  the 
houses,  where  they  had  brought  the  things  to- 
gether. 

The  governor  learning  in  Mauilla  that  Fran- 
cisco Maldonado  was  waiting  for  him  in  the  port 
of  Ochuse,  six  days’  travel  distant,  he  caused 
Juan  Ortiz  to  keep  the  news  secret,  that  he  might 
not  be  interrupted  in  his  purpose ; because  the  pearls 
he  wished  to  send  to  Cuba  for  show  that  their  fame 
might  raise  the  desire  of  coming  to  Florida,  had 
been  lost,  and  he  feared  that,  hearing  of  him  with- 
out seeing  either  gold  or  silver,  or  other  things  of 
value  from  that  land,  it  would  come  to  have  such 
reputation  that  no  one  would  be  found  to  go  there 
when  men  should  be  wanted ; so  he  determined  to 
send  no  news  of  himself  until  he  should  have  dis- 
covered a rich  country.” 

This  was  a fatal  decision  for  De  Soto  in  his  search 
for  riches.  He  had  lost  up  to  this  time  one  hundred  and 
two  of  his  faithful  followers,  and  was  eventually  to  lose 
his  own  life  in  the  wilderness. 

However,  as  he  was  seeking  fame,  he  soon  found  it ; 
for  in  the  discovery  of  the  Mississippi  River  he  more 
surely  enrolled  his  name  in  the  annals  of  fame,  than  if 
he  had  discovered  mines  of  silver  and  gold  richer  than 
all  his  dreams  of  avarice. 


42 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


De  Soto  Reaches  the  Chickasaws — 

With  both  interest  and  pleasure  we  come  now  to 
follow  in  the  footsteps  of  De  Soto  to  the  land  of  the 
Chickasaws.  By  some  strange  imperfection  in  the  his- 
tories which  have  covered  the  countries  where  the  Chick- 
asaws formerly  dwelt,  scant  notice  has  been  given  to  that 
noble  nation ; and  the  debt  of  gratitude  due  to  them 
from  the  English  speaking  world  has  never  been  duly 
acknowledged.  Some  historians  are  like  less  learned  peo- 
ple in  at  least  one  respect ; and  that  is,  they  sometimes 
copy  or  repeat  what  others  have  said,  without  an  inquiry 
into  original  sources  of  information,  Error  thus  be- 
comes self  propagating.  Of  this  the  Chickasaws  have 
a right  to  complain,  as  well  as  all  who  are  interested  to 
know  where  De  Soto  discovered  the  Great  Mississippi 
River,  an  event  of  world-wide  importance. 

We  are  indebted  to  Edward  Gaylord  Bourne,  pro- 
fessor of  history  in  Yale  University,  for  the  narratives 
of  De  Soto  published  “in  the  Trail  Makers  Series;” 
but  he  has  fallen  into  errors  which  have  been  followed 
by  others,  as  will  appear  more  at  large  hereinafter. 

On  the  first  page  of  his  preface,  and  speaking  of 
the  importance  of  De  Soto’s  discoveries,  he  said : 

“It  was  the  first  extensive  exploration  of  at 
least  six  of  our  Southern  States,  and  their  written 
history  opens  with  the  narratives  which  tell  its 
story;  these  same  narratives  contain  the  earliest 
descriptions  which  we  possess  of  the  life  and  man- 
ners of  the  Southern  Indians  so  famous  in  litera- 
ture and  history  the  Choctaws,  the  Cherokees,  the 
Creeks,  and  the  Seminoles ; these  narratives  also  re- 
cord the  discovery  of  the  Mississippi  River  and  the 
story  of  the  first  voyage  upon  it  by  Europeans.” 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


43 


I commend  what  is  said  as  to  the  historical  value 
of  De  Soto’s  discoveries;  but  if  Bourne  is  that  careful 
and  dependable  historian  which  Rowland  and  Lewis 
would  have  us  believe,  then  why  did  he  omit  in  the  above 
statement  to  mention  the  Chickasaw  Indians,  the  only 
tribe  mentioned  in  the  De  Soto  narratives  which  can  be 
identified  by  the  name  attributed  to  them  by  the  De  Soto 
narratives,  and  which  they  bear  to  this  day? 

Elvas  and  Ranjel  wrote  their  name  Chicaca;  Biedma 
and  Garcilaso,  Chicaza;  Adair  who  knew  them  in  1735, 
and  lived  with  them  wrote  it  Chickkasah;  the  Great  John 
Wesley  in  1736  wrote  it  Chickasaws,  while  we  now  write 
the  name  Chickasaw,  the  name  thus  identifying  this 
tribe,  and  this  tribe  only  by  name,  of  all  those  visited 
by  De  Soto,  who  found  them  at  precisely  the  same  place 
where  they  continued  to  live  until  their  removal  to  the 
Indian  Territory  in  1836. 

The  De  Soto  narratives  will  be  searched  in  vain  for 
either  of  the  names  Choctaw,  Cherokee,  Creek  or  Semi- 
nole, or  any  near  approach  thereto.  Why  omit  to  men- 
tion not  only  the  Indian  nation  which  we  know  posi- 
tively De  Soto  visited,  but  which  by  its  valor  and  supe- 
riority deserved  especial  notice;  which  entertained  De 
Soto  and  supplied  all  his  wants  during  a most  severe 
winter ; and  when  insulted  and  mistreated  came  near 
destroying  the  entire  expedition  ? 

Does  not  such  an  omission  and  mistakes  hereafter  to 
be  noted,  awaken  a doubt  as  to  the  conclusions  reached 
by  those  who  make  them  as  to  matters  of  great  moment, 


44 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


where  others  equally  learned  have  come  to  a different 
conclusion  ? 

De  Soto  had  lost  up  to  the  time  he  left  Mauilla  one 
hundred  and  two  of  his  faithful  followers,  and  he  turned 
northward,  and  on  December  14,  1540,  he  came  to  the 
River  Chucaca,  evidently  named  for  the  Chickasaws,  and 
now  known  as  the  Tombigbee. 

When  De  Soto  indicated  his  purpose  to  cross  the 
river  the  Chickasaws  disputed  his  passage ; whereupon 
De  Soto  sent  an  Indian  messenger  to  the  Cacique, 

“to  say  that  if  he  wished  his  friendship  he  should 
quietly  wait  for  him ; but  they  killed  the  messenger 
before  his  eyes,  and  with  loud  yells  departed. 

He  crossed  the  river  the  seventeenth  of  De- 
cember, and  arrived  the  same  day  at  Chicaca,  a 
small  town  of  twenty  houses.  There  the  people  un- 
derwent severe  cold,  for  it  was  already  winter,  and 
snow  fell ; the  greater  number  then  were  lying  in  the 
fields,  it  being  before  they  had  time  to  put  up  hab- 
itations. The  land  was  thickly  inhabited,  the 
people  living  about  over  it  as  they  do  in  Mauilla; 
and  as  it  was  fertile,  the  greater  part  being  under 
cultivation,  there  was  plenty  of  maize.  So  much 
grain  was  brought  together  as  was  needed  for  get- 
ting through  with  the  season.”  (Elvas,  p.  100.) 


The  Original  Chickasaws  as  They  Were — 

We  have  followed  De  Soto  into  the  land  of  the 
Chickasaws.  He  and  his  followers  were  the  first  white 
men  to  visit  their  country  and  to  look  into-  their  faces. 
They  were  great  travelers  and  ever  on  the  alert,  and  the 
news  that  De  Soto  had  put  other  Indians  into  chains  and 
captivity  as  well  as  the  news  of  the  battle  at  Mauilla  had 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


45 


doubtless  reached  the  Chickasaws  long  before  the  expe- 
dition had  reached  their  country.  Biedma  says  the  expe- 
dition was  detained  at  the  river  three  days  before  a pass- 
age was  effected,  which  was  finally  accomplished  and  the 
expedition  installed  for  the  winter  as  shown  above. 

It  seems  to  me  as  this  is  the  dawn  of  history  for 
the  Chickasaws,  and  that  history  not  written  by  them, 
but  by  the  Spaniards,  who  delighted  to  call  themselves 
Christians,  it  is  highly  important  to  inquire  what  man- 
ner of  people  were  the  original  Chickasaw  who  roamed 
the  forest  when  first  seen  by  white  men.  Here  is  a brief 
pen  picture  of  that  splendid  race  now  almost  extinct  in 
the  course  of  a few  years.  The  average  citizen  believes 
that  our  Chickasaws  were  a shiftless  kind  of  savage, 
wandering  over  the  country,  living  in  bark  or  skin  tepees 
and  depending  entirely  upon  the  chase  and  fishing  for  a 
living.  This  is  a very  great  mistake.  They  were  a self- 
reliant,  self-respecting  people ; and  it  may  be  added  they 
required  others  to  respect  them.  They  had  good  houses, 
suitable  to  their  condition  and  means  of  building,  to  live 
in,  those  for  the  summer  months  being  somewhat  differ- 
ent from  those  they  lived  in  for  the  winter,  which  were 
so  constructed  as  to  be  warmer  and  more  comfortable. 

Their  houses  were  not  only  clean,  but  their  lives 
pure,  and  their  women  were  gracious,  many  of  them  very 
handsome ; and  what  is  more  important  they  were  chaste 
and  pure,  for  Haywood,  regarded  as  the  father  of  his 
history  in  Tennessee,  assures  us  that  no  Chickasaw  girl 
was  ever  known  to  give  birth  to  a child  before  wedlock. 
Of  how  many  so-called  civilized  people  can  this  be  said? 


46 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


And  moreover  there  were  no  orphans  in  the  Chicka- 
saw Nation;  nor  was  there  need  for  an  orphan  asylum. 

It  is  true  that  fathers  and  mothers  died  leaving 
little  children,  and  the  fathers  were  often  slain  in  battle, 
but  under  their  system  of  laws  governing  these  matters, 
when  a child  became  motherless  and  fatherless,  then  that 
child  was  immediately  placed  with  some  near  desig- 
nated relative,  able  to  care  for  the  child,  which  became 
thereby  adopted  into  this  new  family,  and  was  as  much 
a member  thereof,  and  received  the  same  love  and  care 
as  the  children  born  to  the  parents  of  the  family.  And 
the  Chickasaws  made  no  difference  between  these  adopted 
children  and  those  of  their  own  blood.  Are  not  these 
matters  of  family  purity,  and  the  loving  care  and  solici- 
tude lavished  upon  helpless  orphanage,  evidences  of  a 
nobility  of  character  worthy  of  imitation  even  among 
the  most  civilized  and  refined  people  on  this  globe? 

At  the  same  time  the  Chickasaw  warriors  were  the 
bravest  of  the  brave,  and  for  fidelity  of  character  they 
were  the  peers  of  any  nation  of  ancient  or  modern  times. 
There  was,  comparatively  speaking,  but  a handful  of 
them,  estimated  by  various  authorities,  and  at  various 
times  from  two  thousand  to  four  thousand  souls. 

The  Choctaws,  Creeks  and  Cherokees  mentioned  by 
Bourne  in  the  excerpt  quoted  above,  each  one  of  them, 
had  as  many  warriors  as  the  Chickasaws  had  warriors, 
women  and  children,  aged  and  infirm  put  together,  and 
yet  the  Chickasaws  were  more  than  a match  for  either 
of  these  tribes,  and  defied  all  comers. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


47 


Their  home  country  and  hunting  grounds  com- 
prised the  vast  and  splendid  domain  described  by  Pio- 
mingo  hereinbefore  quoted,  over  which  they  were  the  ac- 
knowledged overlords,  and  no'  Indian  nation,  however 
large,  dared  dispute  their  overlordship. 

As  to  their  form  of  government,  it  was  one  of  the 
purest  democracies.  There  was  a Chief,  sometimes  called 
by  writers  a King,  because  his  duties  and  prerogatives 
resembled  those  of  a king.  However,  they  were  never 
guilty  of  the  folly  of  having  a hereditary  ruling  king,  or 
other  hereditary  rulers  or  classes.  A Chickasaw  became 
Chief  or  a subordinate  Chief,  by  the  choice  of  the  Nation 
solely  because  he  had  achieved  that  distinction  by  deeds 
for  the  nation  that  entitled  him  to  leadership.  He  en- 
joyed that  distinction  only  so  long  as  his  merits  entitled 
him  thereto. 

They  never  went  to  war  except  after  the  most  care- 
ful deliberation  of  all  the  warriors,  followed  by  fasting 
and  prayer  to  the  “Beloved  One  that  dwelleth  in  the  blue 
sky,”  for  his  aid  and  protection  in  the  impending  con- 
flict. In  war  they  neither  gave  or  expected  quarter, 
and  would  die  at  the  burning  stake  without  uttering  a 
word  of  pain  or  a request  for  mercy. 

They  were  of  a deeply  religious  nature,  but  super- 
stition was  a stranger  to  them. 

Unlike  most  uncivilized  peoples,  the  appearance  of  a 
comet,  or  an  eclipse  or  an  earthquake  brought  no  terrors 
to  them. 

These  they  regarded  as  a part  of  natural  phenomena, 
under  the  guidance  of  the  “Beloved  One,”  who  gov- 


48 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


erned  all  things,  and  bestowed  upon  his  children  all  of 
the  good  things  which  their  merits  deserved.  When  that 
great  philanthropist,  General  James  Oglethorpe,  about 
1733,  procured  permission  of  King  George  to  come  to 
America  and  found  a colony  for  the  poor  and  oppressed 
people  of  England,  who  could  not  make  a respectable  liv- 
ing for  themselves  and  families,  he  took  care  soon  after 
settling  at  Savannah,  Georgia,  to  seek  out  and  make  a 
league  of  friendship  with  that  small  and  distant  nation, 
the  intrepid  Chickasaws,  though  they  lived  nearly  a thou- 
sand miles  in  the  western  wilderness  near  the  Great 
Mississippi.  The  Chickasaws  proved  a bulwark  of 
strength  to  Oglethorpe  and  his  infant  colony. 

When  General  James  Robertson,  that  conspicuous 
character  in  the  settlement  of  Middle  Tennessee,  was 
striving  to  lay  the  foundation  for  his  colony  at  the  French 
Lick,  he  likewise  sought  out  the  intrepid  Chickasaws  and 
made  a league  of  friendship  with  them;  and  but  for  their 
valor  and  fidelity  his  settlement  would  doubtless  have 
been  wiped  from  the  face  of  the  earth. 

When  after  the  Revolutionary  war  was  over,  and 
the  Northwestern  Indians  beyond  the  Ohio  and  about  the 
Great  Lakes,  were  carrying  fire  and  destruction  to  the 
outposts  of  civilization,  and  “Mad”  Anthony  Wayne 
was  striving  to  raise  an  army  to  succor  civilization  in 
the  wilderness,  President  George  Washington,  “first  in 
war,  first  in  peace  and  first  in  the  hearts  of  his  country- 
men,” appealed  to  the  Chickasaws  to  aid  the  United 
States,  to  which  they  cheerfully  responded. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


49 


It  was  a proud  saying  of  the  Chickasaws  that  they 
never  raised  the  hatchet  against  the  English  speaking 
people;  and  if  nobility  of  character  and  fidelity  in  the 
execution  of  every  league  of  friendship  and  treaty  ought 
to  be  rewarded,  then  there  was  nothing  too  good  for  the 
people  and  the  Government  of  the  United  States  to  be- 
stow upon  the  Chickasaws,  but  it  has  been  said,  and 
sometimes  I think  with  some  truth,  that  republics  are  un- 
grateful ; at  least  such  has  been  proven  to  be  the  case,  so 
far  as  the  Chickasaws  are  concerned. 


Battle  with  the  Chickasaws — 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  appearance  of 
white  men,  clad  in  coats  and  other  vestments  of  metal 
armor  and  mounted  on  horseback  generally  struck  terror 
to  the  hearts  of  the  Indians  when  they  first  looked  upon 
white  men,  armored  and  mounted. 

In  Mexico,  upon  the  first  appearance  of  Cortez  and 
his  followers,  the  Indians  thought  the  mounted  men  and 
the  horses  on  which  they  rode  were  unearthly,  gigantic 
monsters  which  had  come  to  destroy  them  and  their 
country  and  that  resistance  would  be  useless.  But  we 
have  seen  that  the  Chickasaws  were  not  to  be  so  easily 
frightened,  and  though  their  weapons  were  inferior  to 
those  of  the  Spaniards ; and  though  the  latter  had  upon 
them  coats-of-mail  and  were  mounted  on  horses  which 
were  likewise  protected  by  armor,  still  we  shall  see  the 
Chickasaws  gladly  matched  their  prowess  with  that  of  the 
Spaniards  in  three  separate  contests.  They  did  not  ask 


50 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


the  aid  of  other  Indians,  feeling  themselves  self  sufficient 
for  any  emergency  that  might  arise. 

Three  of  the  four  narrators  do  not  mention  the 
name  of  the  Cacique  or  Chief  of  the  Chickasaws;  but 
there  is  a sentence  in  Ranjel  (p.  132)  which  though 
somewhat  involved,  gives  the  name  of  the  principal  Chief 
as  Miculasa;  while  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas  gives  the 
names  of  his  two  subordinate  Chiefs  as  Alimamu  and 
Niculasa. 

It  frequently  happens  that  the  narrators  give  differ- 
ent names  both  to  persons  and  places;  but  this  is  not 
strange  when  we  remember  that  they  had  no  guide  as 
to  the  spelling,  and  guessed  at  spelling  from  the  sound 
of  the  words,  as  best  they  could. 

Having  taken  possession,  evidently  against  the  will 
of  the  Chickasaws,  De  Soto  sought  to  open  up  communi- 
cations, seizing  certain  of  the  Indians  and  among  them 
one  that  was  much  esteemed  by  Miculasa,  the  Chief, 
who  came  to  see  De  Soto  on  January  3,  1541,  being 
borne  upon  the  shoulders  of  his  warriors.  Biedma  says : 

“He  gave  us  deer  skins  and  little  dogs  (of 
which  the  Spaniards  were  fond).  The  people  re- 
turned, and  every  day  Indians  came  and  went, 
bringing  us  many  hares,  and  whatever  else  the 
country  supplied.” 

According  to  Elvas  when  Chief  Miculasa  came  to 
see  De  Soto, 

“He  came,  and  offered  him  the  service  of  his 
person,  territories,  and  subjects;  he  said  that  he 
would  cause  two  chiefs  to  visit  him  in  peace.  In 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


51 


a few  days  he  returned  with  them,  they  bringing 
their  Indians.  They  presented  the  Governor  one 
hundred  and  fifty  conies,  with  clothing  of  the  coun- 
try, such  as  shawls  and  skins. 

The  name  of  one  was  Alimamu,  of  the  other 
Niculasa.” 

I have  quoted  from  Elvas  hereinbefore  that  “so 
much  grain  was  brought  together  as  was  needed  for 
getting  through  the  season.” 

Or,  stated  in  one  sentence,  Chief  Miculasa  offered 
to  De  Soto  his  personal  services,  those  of  his  people  and 
territories,  and  actually  supplied  everything  necessary 
for  man  and  beast  of  the  entire  army,  consisting  of  some 
two  hundred  and  fifty  men  (Biedma,  page  21)  and  at 
least  one  hundred  head  of  horses,  hogs,  etc. 

That  this  was  a heavy  burden  to  be  suddenly  placed 
upon  an  uncivilized  people,  does  not  admit  of  question, 
and  at  least  shows  that  the  Chickasaws  were  good  livers. 

When  the  expedition  had  fairly  settled  down,  Chief 
Niculasa  asked  De  Soto  to  aid  him  in  the  suppression 
of  his  vassal  the  Chief  of  Saquechuma  (or  Sacchuema- 
Ranjel),  who  had  rebelled  against  Niculasa.  De  Soto, 
taking  thirty  cavalry  and  eighty  infantry,  went  to  the 
province  said  to  be  in  rebellion  and  found  the  houses 
deserted,  which  were  burned  up.  Ranjel  states  that 
thereupon  peace  was  made,  and  does  not  hint  of  any 
trick  or  dissimulation  on  the  part  of  the  Indians.  How- 
ever, the  Gentleman  of  Elvas  states  that  the  whole  affair 
was  a dissimulation  on  the  part  of  Niculasa,  who  wished 
to  separate  the  army  into  two  parts  so  that  it  could  be 
the  more  easily  destroyed ; but  that,  owing  to  the  vigi- 


52 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


lance  of  the  governor,  his  men  were  at  all  times  on  guard 
and  no  opportunity  was  afforded  to  make  the  contem- 
plated attack. 

However  this  may  be,  it  is  certain  that  the  governor 
was  sending  for  the  chief,  and  sending  a horse  upon 
which  the  chief  was  to  ride  in  making  his  visits  to  dine 
with  the  governor,  and  we  may  all  believe  that  the  gov- 
ernor took  occasion  to  make  many  fair  and  flattering 
speeches  to  the  chief. 

The  Gentleman  of  Elvas  gives  a very  clear  and  the 
best  account  of  the  causes  which  led  to  the  sanguinary 
conflict  between  the  army  of  De  Soto  and  the  Chicka- 
saws,  on  March  4,  1841,  and  the  results  thereof;  and  I 
do  not  think  I can  do  better  than  to  quote  from  him, 
beginning  at  page  102,  as  follows: 

“The  governor  invited  the  caciques  and  some 
chiefs  to  dine  with  him,  giving  them  pork  to  eat, 
which  they  so  relished,  although  not  used  to  it,  that 
every  night  Indians  would  come  up  to  some  houses 
where  the  hogs  slept,  a cross-bow  shot  off  from  the 
camp,  to  kill  and  carry  away  what  they  could  of 
them.  Three  were  taken  in  the  act ; two  the  gov- 
ernor commanded  to  be  slain  with  arrows,  and  the 
remaining  one,  his  hands  having  been  cut  off,  was 
sent  to  the  cacique,  who  appeared  grieved  that  they 
had  given  offense,  and  glad  that  they  were  pun- 
ished. This  chief  was  half  a league  from  where 
the  Christians  were,  in  an  open  country,  whither 
wandered  off  four  of  the  cavalry,  Francisco  Osorio. 
Reynoso,  a servant  of  the  Marquis  of  Astorga, 
and  two  servants  of  the  governor — the  one,  Ribera, 
his  page,  the  other,  Fuentes,  his  chamberlain.  They 
took  some  skins  and  shawls  from  the  Indians,  who 
made  great  outcry  in  consequence  and  abandoned 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


53 


their  houses.  When  the  governor  heard  of  it,  he 
ordered  them  to  be  apprehended,  and  condemned 
Osorio  and  Fuentes  to  death,  as  principals,  and  all 
of  them  to  lose  their  goods.  The  friars,  the  priests 
and  other  principal  personages  solicited  him  to  let 
Osorio  live  and  moderate  the  sentence;  but  he 
would  do  so  for  no  one.  When  about  ordering 
them  to  be  taken  to  the  town-yard  to  be  beheaded, 
some  Indians  arrived,  sent  by  the  chief  to  complain 
of  them.  Juan  Ortiz,  at  the  entreaty  of  Baltasar 
de  Gallegos  and  others,  changed  their  words,  tell- 
ing the  governor,  as  from  the  cacique,  that  he  had 
understood  those  Christians  had  been  arrested  on 
his  account;  that  they  were  in  no  fault,  having  of- 
fended him  in  nothing,  and  that  if  he  would  do  him 
a favour,  to  let  them  go  free;  then  Ortiz  said  to  the 
Indians,  that  the  governor  had  the  persons  in  cus- 
tody, and  would  visit  them  with  such  punishment 
as  should  be  an  example  to  the  rest.  The  prisoners 
were  ordered  to  be  released. 

“So  soon  as  March  had  come,  the  governor, 
having  determined  to  leave  Chicaca,  asked  two 
hundred  tamemes  of  the  cacique,  who  told  him  that 
he  would  confer  with  his  chiefs.  Tuesday,  the 
eighth,  he  went  where  the  cacique  was,  to  ask  for 
the  carriers,  and  was  told  that  he  would  send  them 
the  next  day.  When  the  governor  saw  the  chief, 
he  said  to  Luis  de  Moscoso  that  the  Indians  did 
not  appear  right  to  him;  that  a very  careful  watch 
should  be  kept  that  night,  to  which  the  field  mar- 
shal paid  little  attention.  At  four  o’clock  in  the 
morning  the  Indians  fell  upon  them  in  four  squad- 
rons, from  as  many  quarters,  and  directly  as  they 
were  discovered,  they  beat  a drum.  With  loud 
shouting,  they  came  in  such  haste,  that  they  entered 
the  camp  at  the  same  moments  with  some  scouts 
that  had  been  out ; of  which,  by  the  time  those  in 
the  town  were  aware,  half  the  houses  were  in 
flames.  That  night  it  had  been  the  turn  of  three 


54 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


horsemen  to  be  of  the  watch — two  of  them  of  low 
degree,  the  least  value  of  any  in  the  camp,  and  the 
third  a nephew  of  the  governor,  who  had  been 
deemed  a brave  man  until  now,  when  he  showed 
himself  as  great  a coward  as  either  of  the  others; 
for  they  all  fled,  and  the  Indians,  finding  no  re- 
sistance, came  up  and  set  fire  to  the  place.  They 
waited  outside  of  the  town  for  the  Christians,  be- 
hind the  gates,  as  they  should  come  out  of  the 
doors,  having  had  no  opportunity  to  put  on  their 
arms;  and  as  they  ran  in  all  directions,  bewildered 
by  the  noise,  blinded  by  the  smoke  and  the  bright- 
ness of  the  flame,  knowing  not  whither  they  were 
going,  or  were  able  to  find  their  arms,  or  put  sad- 
dles on  their  steeds,  they  saw  the  Indians  who  shot 
arrows  at  them.  Those  of  the  horses  that  could 
break  their  halters  got  away,  and  many  were  burned 
to  death  in  the  stalls. 

“The  confusion  and  rout  were  so  great  that 
each  man  fled  by  the  way  that  first  opened  to  him, 
there  being  none  to  oppose  the  Indians ; but  God, 
who  chastiseth  his  own  as  he  pleaseth,  and  in  the 
greatest  wants  and  perils  hath  them  in  his  hand, 
shut  the  eyes  of  the  Indians,  so  that  they  could  not 
discern  what  they  had  done,  and  believed  that  the 
beasts  running  about  loose  were  the  cavalry  gath- 
ering to  fall  upon  them.  The  governor,  with  a 
soldier  named  Tapia,  alone'  got  mounted,  and 
charging  upon  the  Indians,  he  struck  down  the  first 
of  them  he  met  with  a blow  of  the  lance,  but  went 
over  with  the  saddle,  because  in  the  haste  it  had 
not  been  tightly  drawn,  and  he  fell.  The  men  on 
foot,  running  to  a thicket  outside  of  town,  came 
together  there ; the  Indians  imagining,  as  it  was 
dark,  that  the  horses  were  cavalry  coming  upon 
them,  as  has  been  stated,  they  fled,  leaving  only 
one  dead,  which  was  he  the  governor  smote. 

The  town  lay  in  cinders.  A woman,  with  her 
husband,  having  left  a house,  went  back  to  get 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


55 


some  pearls  that  had  remained  there ; and  when 
she  would  have  come  out  again  the  fire  had  reached 
the  door  and  she  could  not,  neither  could  her  hus- 
band assist  her,  so  she  was  consumed.  Three  Chris- 
tians came  out  of  the  fire  in  so  bad  plight,  that  one 
of  them  died  in  three  days  from  that  time,  and  the 
two  others  for  a long  while  were  carried  in  their 
pallets,  on  poles  borne  on  the  shoulders  of  Indians, 
for  otherwise  they  could  not  have  got  along.  There 
died  in  this  affair  eleven  Christians,  and  fifty 
horses.  One  hundred  of  the  swine  remained,  four 
hundred  having  been  destroyed,  from  the  conflagra- 
tion of  Mauilla. 

“If,  by  good  luck,  anyone  had  been  able  to  save 
a garment  until  then,  it  was  there  destroyed.  Many 
remained  naked,  not  having  had  time  to  catch  up 
their  skin  dresses.  In  that  place  they  suffered 
greatly  from  cold,  the  only  relief  being  in  large 
fires,  and  they  passed  the  night  long  in  turning, 
without  the  power  to  sleep;  for  as  one  side  of  a 
man  would  warm,  the  other  would  freeze.  Some 
contrived  mats  of  dried  grass  sewed  together,  one 
to  be  placed  below  and  the  other  above  them ; many 
who  laughed  at  this  expedient  were  afterwards 
compelled  to  do  likewise.  The  Christians  were  left 
so  broken  up,  that  what  with  the  want  of  the  sad- 
dles and  arms  which  had  been  destroyed,  had  the 
Indians  returned  the  second  night,  they  might,  with 
little  effort,  have  been  overpowered.  They  removed 
from  that  town  to  the  one  where  the  cacique  was 
accustomed  to  live,  because  it  was  in  the  open  field. 
In  eight  days’  time  they  had  constructed  many  sad- 
dles from  the  ash,  and  likewise  lances,  as  good  as 
those  made  in  Biscay.” 


Garcilaso  de  la  Vega  gives  substantially  the  same 
account  as  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas,  but  adds  some  addi- 
tional particulars,  and  among  them  that  the  Chickasaw 


56 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


chief  chose  a dark  and  cloudy  night  when  a north  wind 
was  blowing  furiously,  to  make  the  attack. 

That  the  chief  divided  his  forces  into  three  bands, 
so  as  to  make  the  attack  simultaneously  in  three  several 
places,  the  chief  leading  in  person  the  force  which  at- 
tacked in  the  center.  He  adds : 

“Immediately  the  air  resounded  with  the  blasts 
of  conch  shells,  the  rumbling  of  wooden  drums, 
and  the  yells  and  war  whoops  of  the  savages,  who 
rushed  like  demons  to  the  assault.  Many  had 
lighted  matches,  like  cords,  made  of  a vegetable 
substance,  which  whirled  in  the  air,  would  blaze 
up  into  a flame ; others  had  arrows  tipped  with 
the  same.  These  they  hurled  upon  the  houses, 
which  being  of  reeds  and  straw,  instantly  took  fire, 
and  the  wind  blowing  strongly,  were  soon  wrapped 
in  flames.” 

Ranjel  says  that  the  Indians  “entered  the  camp  in 
many  detachments,  beating  drums  as  if  it  had  been  in 
Italy,  and  setting  fire  to  the  camp,  they  burned  and  cap- 
tured fifty-nine  horses  and  three  of  them  they  shot 
through  the  shoulders  with  arrows.”  He  added:  “If 
the  Indians  had  known  how  to  follow  up  their  victory, 
this  would  have  been  the  last  day  of  the  lives  of  the 
Christians  of  that  army,  and  made  an  end  of  the  demand 
for  carriers.” 

We  also  learn  from  Garcilaso  that  the  woman  who 
was  burned  -up  was  the  wife  of  a worthy  soldier,  and 
that  she  was  the  only  white  woman  that  had  accompa- 
nied the  expedition  from  Spain.  That  she  was  a white 
woman  is  not  stated  by  either  of  the  other  three  narra- 
tors, and  it  will  be  seen  that  the  sentence  from  Elvas  in 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


57 


reference  to  her  death  is  obscure,  but  not  in  conflict  with 
Garcilaso. 

Her  husband  had  left  her  behind  when  he  rushed 
forth  to  fight,  and  she  had  escaped  from  the  burning 
house,  but  returned  to  save  some  pearls;  and  was  cut  off 
by  the  flames  from  her  second  retreat  and  was  found 
burned  to  death. 

The  loss  of  the  Spaniards,  according  to  Elvas,  was 
eleven  Christians  and  fifty  horses;  according  to  Ranjel, 
twelve  Christians  and  fifty-nine  horses ; while  Garcilaso 
says  forty  Spaniards  fell  in  combat  and  fifty  horses  per- 
ished and  many  more  wounded;  that  the  darts  had  been 
skilfully  aimed  at  the  vital  parts  of  the  horses.  One 
horse  had  two  shafts  through  the  heart,  shot  from  dif- 
ferent directions.  Another  horse  and  one  of  the  heavi- 
est in  the  army,  was  killed,  sped  by  such  a vigorous  arm 
that  the  arrow  had  passed  through  both  shoulders  and 
four-finger’s  breadth  beyond. 

Biedma  in  his  usual  laconic  style,  says : 

“The  Indians  did  us  very  great  injury,  killing 
fifty-seven  horses,  more  than  three  hundred  hogs, 
and  thirteen  or  fourteen  men ; and  it  was  a great, 
mysterious  providence  of  God  that,  though  we  were 
not  resisting  them,  nor  giving  them  any  cause  to 
do  so,  they  turned  and  fled ; had  they  followed  us 
up,  not  a man  of  all  our  number  could  have  es- 
caped. Directly  we  moved  to  a cottage  about  a 
mile  off.” 

In  the  last  conflict  between  the  Spaniards  and  the 
Chickasaws,  as  will  be  seen  in  the  next  chapter,  the  num- 
ber of  Spaniards  who  then  lost  their  lives  in  battle  is 


58 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


stated  in  a rather  equivocal  way ; but  it  seems  certain 
that  at  least  fifteen  died  on  the  forward  march,  and  I 
am  inclined  to  the  opinion  that  as  many  Spaniards  per- 
ished in  the  last  as  did  in  the  first  battle. 

The  loss  in  the  first  battle  of  so  much  of  De  Soto’s 
weapons,  armor,  horses,  hogs,  etc.,  was  probably  as  great 
a weakening  of  the  army  as  the  loss  of  the  lives  of  the 
Spaniards. 

We  must  always  bear  in  mind  that  our  source  of 
information  comes  from  the  Spaniards,  who  no>  doubt 
colored  their  accounts  to  their  advantage,  and  doubtless 
to  the  disadvantage  of  the  Chickasaws. 


It  will  be  noted  that  all  four  of  the  narratives  state 
the  loss  of  some  three  hundred  head  of  hogs,  which  were 
greatly  prized  by  De  Soto.  How  he  contrived  to  carry 
with  his  army  so  large  a number  of  these  slow-moving 
and  easily-wearied  animals  through  the  wilderness,  and 
to  so  keep  them  that  they  constantly  multiplied,  is  one  of 
the  marvels  of  this  extraordinary  expedition.  He  saved 
enough,  however,  for  stock,  for  after  his  death,  May  21, 
1542,  his  personal  effects  were  sold  at  auction,  and  among 
these  his  hogs,  which  brought  two  hundred  cruzados  per 
head,  to  be  paid  at  the  end  of  the  expedition,  upon  a di- 
vision of  the  fruits  thereof,  or  if  none,  then  within  one 
year.  From  that  time  forward  most  of  the  people  raised 
hogs  and  ate  freely  of  pork. 

In  an  interesting  article  published  by  Mr.  E.  T.  Win- 
ston of  Pontotoc,  in  his  paper  the  advance,  November 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


59 


22,  1917,  he  reviews  this  episode  in  the  travels  of  De 
Soto  with  respect  to  the  loss  of  so  many  of  his  hogs, 
many  of  which  escaped  into  the  wilds  and  became  the 
progenitors  of  multitudes  of  wild  hogs  found  by  the 
earliest  settlers  in  Mississippi. 

Mr.  Winston  felicitates  the  State  of  Mississippi  as 
the  place  which  first  furnishing  the  time,  the  place  and 
the  occasion  when  “hog  and  hominy”  first  met,  although 
the  meeting  was  destined  to  give  rise  to  the  near  destruc- 
tion of  the  De  Soto  expedition,  which  furnished  the  hogs 
while  the  Indians  furnished  the  hominy. 

It  is  well  known  that  maize,  or  Indian  corn,  was 
a gift  of  incalculable  value  from  the  Indians  of  the  new 
world  to  civilization,  more  of  that  grain  being  now  raised 
in  the  United  States  than  any  other  cereal,  the  crop  for 
1917,  being  3,247,512,000  bushels,  valued  at  $4,871.- 
268,000  a sum  so  great  as  to  stagger  the  imagination. 
Lye  hominy,  so  much  used  throughout  the  South  before 
the  Civil  War,  and  now  put  up  in  cans  by  large  corpora- 
tions for  general  distribution  through  the  channels  of 
trade  and  commerce,  is  a very  wholesome  and  nourish- 
ing article  of  diet,  a gift  of  the  Indians  to  the  world, 
which  the  Chickasaws  called  “Tom-fulla.” 

What  Caused  the  Conflict — 

It  is  perfectly  evident  from  the  account  of  the  Span- 
iards that  the  attack  by  the  Chickasaws  upon  the  Span- 
iards was  brought  about  by  two  causes  which  justly  in- 
censed the  Indians. 


60 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


In  the  first  place  the  Spaniards  had  appropriated  corn 
and  other  provisions  belonging  to  the  Indians  worth 
probably  ten  times  the  value  of  all  of  the  Spanish  hogs. 
Doubtless  the  Indians  thought  that  a fair  exchange  was 
no  robbery;  and  conceding  that  some  of  these  hogs  were 
taken  without  permission,  still  it  does  seem  a harsh  and 
cruel  punishment  to  have  put  two  Indians  to  death  there- 
for ; and  furthermore  to  have  cut  off  the  hands  of  a third 
one  and  sent  him  to  his  people.  While  I am  well  aware 
that  the  men  at  that  day  and  time  are  not  to  be  judged 
by  the  standards  of  the  present,  still  the  duplicity  of 
Juan  Ortiz  turned  the  retributory  sentence  pronounced 
by  De  Soto  on  his  fellows,  who  had  robbed  the  Indians, 
into  a perfect  mockery  of  justice. 

It  is  true  that  De  Soto  had  decreed  the  same  punish- 
ment on  his  own  followers,  that  he  had  visited  on  the 
Indians  for  a like  offense;  but  he  was  deceived,  and 
the  ends  of  justice  defeated  by  the  deception  of  Ortiz  and 
his  confederates;  but  we  may  be  assured  that  his  false- 
hoods did  not  deceive  the  ever  vigilant  and  intelligent 
Chickasaws.  The  most  unfortunate  phase  of  the  matter 
is  that  in  all  probability  the  Indians  were  never  made 
aware  of  the  deception  practiced  upon  De  Soto  by  his 
own  followers. 

In  the  next  place  the  demand  made  by  the  Spaniards 
for  porters  was  probably  the  immediate  cause  for  the 
attack  made  by  the  Chickasaws  upon  the  expedition. 
Nothing  could  escape  the  vigilance  of  the  Chickasaws,  for 
the  smallness  of  the  nation,  surrounded  by  hostile  neigh- 
bors, so  much  more  numerous  than  themselves,  made  the 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


61 


trite  saying  “eternal  vigilance  is  the  price  of  liberty,”  a 
part  of  the  very  warp  and  woof  of  their  existence.  1 
doubt  not  that  they  had  a complete  history  of  the  treat- 
ment of  the  Spaniards  towards  the  Indians  before  reach- 
ing their  country;  and  if  so  they  knew  that  if  a tribe 
once  furnished  the  desired  porters,  they  were  not  only 
compelled  to  carry  burdens  all  day,  but  were  compelled 
to  make  camp,  and  when  camp  was  made,  it  was  their 
duty  to  feed  the  stock,  do  the  cooking,  and  in  short,  do 
all  menial  work ; they  were  secured  by  chains  in  order  to 
prevent  escape,  and  carried  as  virtual  prisoners,  either 
to  death,  or  so  far  from  their  people  that  they  could  never 
return  again  to  their  beloved  country. 

Evidently  the  Chickasaws  preferred  death  to  such 
a fate  and  were  ready  to  stake  their  all  on  an  unequal 
contest.  This  they  did  not  only  in  the  manner  set  forth 
above,  but  in  a few  days  they  renewed  the  attack,  but 
without  success.  De  Soto  was  almost  completely  cast 
down  by  the  terrible  assaults  of  the  fearless  and  intrepid 
Chickasaws.  He  had  become  convinced  from  appearances 
that  the  Indians  were  contemplating  a battle,  saying  to 
his  followers:  “To  night  is  an  Indian  night.  I shall 
sleep  armed  and  my  horse  saddled.” 

He  charged  Luis  de  Moscoso,  Master  of  the  Camp, 
that  he  should  take  extra  precautions  that  night  in  re- 
gard to  the  sentinels,  since  they  were  to  start  on  their 
journey  next  day.  Moscoso  put  on  the  morning  watch 
three  of  the  most  useless  men,  mounted  on  the  poorest 
horses  in  the  camp.  For  his  gross  negligence  in  this  re- 


62 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


gard  De  Soto  deposed  Moscoso,  and  appointed  Baltazar 
de  Gallagos  in  his  place. 

In  the  next  chapter  I will  take  up  the  line  of  march 
from  the  Chickasaw  country  to  the  place  where  De  Soto 
discovered  the  Mississippi  River,  and  then  we  will  see 
that  the  Chickasaws  made  a third  attempt  to  destroy  the 
Spaniards.  As  that  chapter  will  deal  particularly  with 
the  place  at  which  the  great  river  was  discovered  and  is 
intended  as  an  answer  to  those  who  contend  that  it  was 
discovered  in  Tunica  County,  Mississippi,  and  who  also 
affect  to  reject  the  narrative  of  Garcilaso  de  la  Vega, 
“the  Inca,”  I will  not  in  that  chapter  quote  from  or  say 
anything  upon  the  authority  of  Garcilaso,  though  I con- 
sider his  narrative  an  extremely  valuable  contribution  to 
our  knowledge  of  what  really  occurred  during  the  De 
Soto  expedition. 

However,  as  showing  the  bravery  and  indomitable 
spirit  of  the  Chickasaws,  Garcilaso  tells  at  length  of  the 
complicated  and  well-built  fort  the  Chickasaws  had  con- 
structed near  a rapid  river,  which  we  now  call  the  Tal- 
lahatchie, and  of  the  sanguinary  conflict  which  there  took 
place. 

I select  these  two  excerpts  (p.  306)  as  showing  the 
prowess  and  intrepidity  of  the  Chickasaws  : 

“At  the  first  discharge,  Diego  de  Castro,  Luis 
Bravo,  and  Francisco  de  Figueroa,  were  brought  to 
the  ground,  mortally  wounded.  All  three  were 
pierced  in  the  thigh,  with  arrows  barbed  with  flint, 
for  the  savages,  having  gained  some  experience  dur- 
ing their  warfare  with  the  Spaniards,  always  aimed 
at  the  thigh,  which  was  never  guarded.  The  Span- 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


63 


iards,  seeing  their  companions  fall,  shouted  to  one 
another  to  rush  in,  and  leave  the  Indians  no  time  to 
gall  them  with  their  arrows.  They  charged  furious- 
ly, and  drove  the  enemy  before  them,  to  the  very 
portals  of  the  fortress. 

“While  Jaun  de  Anasco  and  Andres  de  Vas- 
concelos  attacked  the  savages  on  the  flank,  De  Soto 
with  twenty  horses,  charged  upon  the  other.  As  the 
governor  was  spurring  onward,  an  arrow  struck 
him  upon  his  casque  with  such  force  that  it  re- 
bounded a pike’s  length  in  the  air,  and  De  Soto 
confessed  afterwards  that  it  made  his  eyes  flash 
fire.  Pressed  by  the  united  shock  of  horse  and  foot, 
the  Indians  made  for  the  entrance  of  the  fort,  but 
these  were  so  narrow  that  a great  number  were 
slaughtered  without  the  walls.  The  Spaniards 
rushed  in,  pell-mell,  with  them.  * * * 

One  of  the  savages  who  had  escaped,  desirous 
of  showing  his  skill  with  the  bow  and  arrow,  sep- 
arated himself  from  his  companions,  and  shouted 
to  the  Spaniards,  giving  them  to  understand,  by 
signs  and  words,  that  he  challenged  any  archer  tc 
come  out  and  have  a shot  with  him,  to  prove  which 
was  the  better  marksman.  Upon  this,  Juan  de  Sa- 
linas, a brave  Austrian  (Asturian?)  hidalgo,  whc 
with  some  companions  had  sheltered  himself  among 
trees  from  the  arrows,  stepped  forth,  and  walking 
down  to  the  bank  of  the  river,  took  his  stand  op- 
posite to  the  Indian.  One  of  his  companions  called 
to  him  to  wait  until  he  should  come  to  guard  him 
with  his  shield ; but  Salinas  refused  to  take  any 
advantage  of  his  enemy.  He  placed  an  arrow  in 
his  cross-bow,  while  the  Indian  also  selected  one 
from  his  quiver,  and  both  drew  at  the  same  moment. 

The  dart  of  Juan  de  Salinas  took  effect,  and 
pierced  the  Indian’s  breast.  He  would  have  fallen, 
but  was  received  in  the  arms  of  his  companions,  whc 
bore  him  away,  more  dead  than  alive.  The  Indian’s 
arrow  pierced  the  Spaniard  in  the  nape  of  the  neck 


64 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


and  remained  crossed  in  the  wound.  Salinas  return- 
ed with  it  in  this  state  to  his  comrades,  well  pleased 
with  his  success. 

The  comrades  of  the  fallen  Indian  allowed  him 
to  depart  without  molestation,  as  the  challenge  had 
been  man  to  man.” 


The  bravery  thus  displayed,  not  only  by  the  Chicka- 
saws  as  a nation,  but  by  the  Chickasaw  warrior,  who  de- 
fiantly challenged  any  archer  of  the  De  Soto  army  to 
single  combat,  commands  the  admiration  of  all  who  re- 
spect valor,  and  those  who  willingly  offer  their  lives  up- 
on the  altar  of  their  country,  that  their  countrymen  may 
enjoy  the  priceless  privilege  of  freedom. 

Can  any  Mississippian,  Tennessean,  Kentuckian  or 
Alabamian  whose  home  once  lay  within  the  domains  of 
that  splendid  territory  over  which  the  Chickasaws  were 
the  acknowledged  Overlords,  read  the  simple  story  left  by 
the  Spaniards  of  the  fight  for  liberty  made  by  the  Chick- 
asaws, and  not  be  thrilled  with  emotions  of  admiration 
for  those  who  first  occupied  their  homes? 

Claiborne,  the  greatest  of  Mississippi  historians,  af- 
ter giving  an  account  of  the  battles  of  the  Chickasaws 
with  the  Spaniards  for  freedom,  eloquently  concludes : 

“History  records  no  bolder  enterprise.  A forti- 
fied camp,  defended  by  the  best  soldiers  of  Europe 
armed  with  what  the  Indians  called  thunder  and 
lightning,  attacked  by  naked  savages,  with  bows 
and  war  clubs : All  honor  to  this  noble  race  of 
warriors — these  native  Mississippians  who  subse- 
quently, in  defense  of  their  homes  and  fireside,  de- 
feated and  disgraced  three  French  Armies,  sent  to 
subdue  them.  And  may  this  ever  be  the  fate  of 
the  invader  of  the  territory  of  a free  people.” 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


65 


CHAPTER  IV. 

TOPOGRAPHY  OF  THE  COUNTRY  BETWEEN  THE 
CHICKASAW  COUNTRY  AND  CHICKASAW  BLUFFS. 

On  February  18,  1917,  Dr.  Dunbar  Rowland,  Di- 
rector of  the  Mississippi  Department  of  Archives  and  His- 
tory, published  a paper  in  the  Commercial  Appeal,  the 
purpose  of  which  was  to  show  that  De  Soto  discovered 
the  Mississippi  River  in  Tunica  County,  Mississippi,  at 
a point  he  cannot  locate;  and  it  may  be  added,  nor  can 
any  one  else. 

Soon  thereafter  Judge  J.  P.  Young,  author  of  the 
History  of  Memphis,  and  other  works,  replied  to  Dr. 
Rowland  in  a very  vigorous  manner,  insisting  that  De 
Soto  discovered  the  great  river  at  the  fourth  Chickasaw 
Bluff,  named  after  that  intrepid  and  splendid  nation, 
the  Chickasaws,  these  Bluffs  being  their  entrepot  or  land- 
ing, from  which,  on  the  bosom  of  the  father  of  waters 
they  traveled  in  their  water-craft  to  the  most  northern- 
most parts  of  their  princely  domains,  which  stretched  up 
the  Mississippi,  then  up  the  Ohio  beyond  the  mouth  of 
the  Tennessee  to  the  dividing  ridge  between  it  and  the 
Cumberland  river,  in  what  is  now  the  state  of  Kentucky. 
Memphis  is  built  on  the  fourth  Chickasaw  Bluff,  and  if 
Judge  Young  is  correct,  it  was  here  that  the  great  river 
was  first  discovered  in  May,  1541. 

Centenary  Vol.  II,  Publications  of  the  Mississippi 
Historical  Society,  so  ablv  edited  by  Dr.  Rowland,  has 
just  come  to  hand,  and  contains  the  two  papers  referred 


66 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


to,  together  with  a second  paper  by  Dr.  Rowland  in  re- 
ply to  Judge  Young. 

These  papers  having  thus  been  put  in  permanent 
form,  the  purpose  of  this  paper  is  to  meet  Dr.  Rowland 
on  his  favorite  arena,  as  disclosed  in  his  last  paper,  and 
to  show  beyond  a reasonable  doubt  that  De  Soto  dis- 
covered the  Mississippi,  the  longest  river  in  the  world,  at 
the  point  whereon  Memphis  is  now  situated. 

Like  Judge  Young,  from  childhood  to  young  man- 
hood I lived  in  Mississippi,  in  De  Soto  County,  fifteen 
miles  southeast  of  Memphis,  and  love  that  State ; but  the 
question  is  at  what  point  was  the  river  discovered,  and 
this  question  must  be  answered  according  to  the  facts 
as  they  were,  and  not  as  we  would  have  them  to  be. 


Dr.  Rowland  Has  Shifted  the  Bulwark  of  His  Defense — 


The  discussion  between  the  two  eminent  authors  as 
disclosed  in  the  papers,  is  pitched  on  high  ground  as 
become  men  of  their  character,  and  I would  not  have  it 
supposed  that  in  what  I may  say,  I desire  in  any  way  to 
make  invidious  criticisms,  for  my  only  purpose  is  to  throw 
light  on  this  most  interesting  question,  and  contribute,  if  I 
can,  to  its  proper  solution. 

That  Dr.  Rowland  has  shifted  the  main  bulwark 
of  the  defense  of  his  theory  I think  is  quite  plain,  for 
in  his  first  paper  on  page  145  of  the  work  referred  to,  he 
says : 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


67 


“I  freely  admit  in  the  outset  that  the  claim  of 
Memphis  as  the  place  where  the  great  river  was 
discovered  has  been  accepted  by  some  Memphians, 
but  that  acceptance  has,  no  doubt,  been  based  on  the 
narrative  of  Garcilaso  de  la  Vega,  ‘the  Inca,’  which 
careful  and  complete  investigation  has  shown  to  be 
unreliable,  and  not  in  accord  with  the  narrative  of 
the  facts  as  given  in  all  contemporary  accounts.” 

Further  on  I will  challenge  this  conclusion  as  to  the 
“Inca.”  But  for  the  present  mark  that  he  says  the  claim 
of  Memphis  has  been  accepted  “by  some  Memphians,” 
the  plain  implication  being  that  only  “some  Memphians” 
claim  that  the  river  was  discovered  here,  and  that  the 
claim  has  no  other  support. 

Judge  Young  met  this  claim  of  Dr.  Rowland  and 
utterly  destroyed  it,  by  showing  that  many  historians, 
through  a series  of  many  years  had  designated  the  fourth 
Chickasaw  Bluff  as  the  place  where  De  Soto  discovered 
the  Mississippi.  What  is  of  prime  importance  is  that 
among  these  authors  cited  by  Judge  Young,  and  from 
whom  he  quoted,  was  Bancroft,  whose  reputation  as  an 
accurate  and  accomplished  historian  is  nation-wide,  and 
I think  it  may  be  said  he  has  international  reputation, 
and  greater  than  that  of  all  the  historians  cited  by  Dr. 
Rowland,  if  it  were  possible  to  combine  their  several 
reputations  in  one. 

And,  moreover,  Judge  Young  also  quotes  from  J. 
F.  H.  Claiborne,  in  “Mississippi  as  a State  and  Terri- 
tory,” easily  the  most  noted  of  all  Mississippi  historians, 
for  Claiborne  likewise  supports  the  claim  that  the  river 
was  discovered  where  Memphis  now  stands. 


68 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Evidently  the  idea  that  the  claim  of  Memphis  has 
been  accepted  only  “by  some  Memphians”  was  exploded. 

In  his  second  paper  (p.  159)  Dr.  Rowland  says  that 
the  most  reliable  source  of  information  is  found  in 
original  records.  Next  in  importance,  he  insists,  comes 
the  topography  and  geology  of  the  country  through 
which  the  expedition  passed.  To  these  views  I give  my 
hearty  assent,  and  upon  this  arena  which  Dr.  Rowland 
has  thus  chosen,  I wish  to  meet  him. 

His  statement  that  the  geology  of  the  country  is  the 
same  is  entirely  correct;  but  his  further  statement  that 
the  topography  is  the  same,  is  only  partially  correct,  for 
the  Indian  villages  and  forests  are  not  only  gone,  but  a 
large  part  of  the  hills  on  the  route  have  been  so  gullied 
and  gutted  by  rains  and  the  elements  since  the  country 
was  denuded  of  its  forests,  the  valleys  so  filled  with  sand, 
and  the  rivers  and  creeks  so  choked  up  and  dwindled 
away,  as  to  present  only  a faint  topographical  resem- 
blance to  the  time  of  De  Soto,  now  (1919)  378  years 
ago. 

The  late  Ab  Myers,  of  Byhalia,  Mississippi,  speak- 
ing to  me  on  this  subject  many  years  ago,  said  that  he 
had  all  the  works  of  De  Tocqueville,  the  noted  French 
statesman  and  writer,  and  that  De  Tocqueville  in  his 
travels  through  that  part  of  the  state,  noticing  the  great 
quantities  of  sand  in  the  soil,  predicted  that  in  100  years 
after  the  settlement  of  the  country,  it  would  become  a 
howling  wilderness.  It  must  be  admitted  that  the 
prophecy  has  been  to  some  extent  fulfilled,  but  quite 
enough  remains  for  the  present  discussion. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


69 


In  a recent  letter  to  me  by  W.  T.  Ross,  cashier  of 
the  Holly  Springs  Bank,  and  who  has  been  connected 
therewith  for  forty  years,  he  says : 

“Holly  Springs  was  named  for  the  beautiful 
spring  surrounded  by  holly  trees,  but  the  sand  has 
covered  up  the  spring,  and  not  a holly  tree  is  to  be 
seen.  My  father  told  me  that  when  he  came  here  in 
1836,  the  spring  was  about  30  feet  wide  and  10 
feet  deep,  and  would  swim  a horse.  This  spring 
formed  a bold  creek  that  emptied  into*  Tallaloosa, 
southwest  of  the  town.” 

When  Mr.  Ross  was  a lad  the  spring  was  still  run- 
ning pretty  strong.  On  July  21,  1918,  he  walked  with 
me  over  and  through  back  yards  to  show  me  the  spot 
where  this  beautiful  spring  once  flowed,  not  a vestige 
of  it  or  its  beautiful  trees  being  left,  its  site  being  in 
what  appeared  to  be  a back  yard  for  cattle ! 


How  Language  Should  Be  Interpreted — 

We  all  know  that  there  is  no  direct  communication 
between  the  minds  of  men,  and  that  our  thoughts,  con- 
ceptions and  ideas  must  usually  be  conveyed  by  words, 
written  or  spoken.  The  frailty  of  human  speech  or  writ- 
ten language  to  correctly  convey  what  we  wish  others  to 
know  has  often  been  lamented,  and  we  are  frequently 
forced  to  resort  to  rules  of  interpretation.  Interpreta- 
tion may  be  defined  as  the  art  of  finding  out  the  true 
sense  of  any  set  of  words  ; that  is,  the  sense  which  their 
author  intended  to  convey.  In  order  to  do  this  we  must 
view  the  situation  of  the  party  who  wrote  the  words  as 
well  as  all  his  surroundings,  so  as  to  place  ourselves  in 


70 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


the  position  which  he  occupied.  Applying  the  principle 
to  the  subject  of  this  discussion  we  must  inquire  what 
was  the  topography  of  the  county  through  which  the 
writers  had  to  pass;  what  roads  or  trails,  if  any,  could 
be  made  available,  and  their  respective  difficulties,  and 
generally  to  put  ourselves  in  their  places  so  as  to  ascer- 
tain the  true  meaning  of  the  language  used.  This  leads 
us  to  a consideration  of  the  topography  of  the  country, 
and  what  was  the  most  available  route  to  pursue  for  the 
objects  of  the  expedition.  Manifestly,  likewise,  all  that 
the  narrators  say  must  be  considered  and  construed  to- 
gether, and  not  quoted  in  part,  much  less  garbled,  as  I 
think  has  been  done. 

In  Lieber’s  Hermeneutics,  or  the  principles  of  in- 
terpretation and  construction  (p.  71),  it  is  said: 

“In  the  first  place  it  must  begin  with  what  is 
likewise  the  first  rule  of  criticism. 

We  must  convince  ourselves  that  the  text  be 
genuine,  that  is,  that  it  has  proceeded  from  the 
utterer  from  which  it  purports  to  have  proceeded, 
or  from  whom  others  assert  it  to  have  proceeded; 
or  that  it  belongs  to  that  period  at  which  it  is  main- 
tained that  it  originated.  This  is  a rule  of  para- 
mount importance  in  all  departments,  and  not  the 
least  so  in  politics,  whether  it  refer  to  documents 
issued  by  the  highest  authority,  or  to  reports  of 
speeches,  or  to  conversational  sayings  of  a political 
character.” 

The  correctness  of  these  principles  are  so  obvious 
that  it  would  seem  unnecessary  to  appeal  thereto ; never- 
theless we  will  see  further  on,  a flagrant  violation  of  the 
foregoing  elementary  and  paramount  rule,  in  that  the 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


71 


texts  of  the  narratives  have  been  misquoted  and  garbled 
to  a degree  that  is  surprising.  We  need  not  impute  any 
improper  motive,  and  indeed  may  assume  that  every- 
thing has  been  written  in  the  utmost  good  faith;  never- 
theless the  question  remains  as  to  what  is  the  true  inter- 
pretation of  the  language  used  by  the  various  narrators; 
and  fidelity  in  strictly  quoting  the  exact  language  as 
written  lies  at  the  very  threshold  of  this  discussion,  and 
can  not  be  evaded  if  we  would  rather  pursue  another 
course. 


The  Trails  of  the  Chickasaw  Indians — 

In  the  celebrated  conference  between  the  Chicka- 
saw, Creek  and  Cherokee  Indians  at  Nashville  in  1792, 
and  Governor  Blount,  James  Robertson  and  others,  Pio- 
mingo,  the  great  Chickasaw  Chief,  thus  described  the 
boundaries  of  their  lands  : 

“I  will  describe  the  boundaries  of  our  lands. 
It  begins  on  the  Ohio  at  the  ridge  which  divides  the 
waters  of  Tennessee  and  Cumberland,  and  extends 
with  the  ridge,  eastwardly,  as  far  as  the  most  east- 
ern waters  of  Elk  River;  thence  across  the  Tennes- 
see, and  a neck  of  land,  to  Tenchacunda  Creek,  a 
southern  branch  of  the  Tennessee,  and  up  the  same 
to  its  source;  thence  to  the  waters  of  the  Tombigby; 
that  is,  to  the  west  fork  of  Long  Leaf  Pine  Creek, 
and  down  it  to  the  line  of  the  Chickasaws  and  Choc- 
taws, a little  below  the  trading  road.” 

In  1794,  President  George  Washington  gave  to  the 
Chickasaws  a certificate  confirming  to  them  their  right 
to  the  territory  so  described  by  Piomingo. 


72 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


The  expression  often  used  with  respect  to  the  con- 
dition of  this  country  at  the  time  of  its  discovery,  as  be- 
ing a pathless  wilderness,  has  in  it  scarcely  a vestige  of 
truth.  The  trails  or  traces  of  the  Indians  extended  hun- 
dreds of  miles  in  all  directions  and  they  criss-crossed 
each  other  over  the  whole  continent,  and  over  these  the 
Indians  constantly  traveled  on  continuous  trips  thou- 
sands of  miles.  The  Chickasaws  were  great  travelers, 
and  thought  nothing  of  going  to  the  far  west,  over  their 
trails  to  Mobile  on  the  Gulf,  to  Savannah  and  Charleston 
on  the  Atlantic  and  to  the  Great  Lakes  in  the  far  North, 
where  they  waged  furious  warfare  with  the  Iroquois. 

The  Indians,  and  the  Chickasaws  in  particular,  were 
pastmasters  in  all  woodcraft  and  knew  the  topography 
of  the  country  and  all  its  conditions  almost  by  instinct ; 
and  as  a general  rule  what  may  be  termed  their  princi- 
pal trails  or  highways  ran  along  the  crest  of  ridges  in 
such  manner  as  not  only  to  avoid  crossing  water  courses, 
but  of  passing  over  stony  places  or  through  thick  scrub 
and  briars  or  dense  timber,  so  as  to  protect  their  foot- 
gear, their  clothing  and  their  flesh  as  well. 

Their  trails  or  traces  were  far  superior  to  any  the 
white  man  could  locate,  and  the  early  use  by  white  pio- 
neers of  these  Indian  trails  was  a constant  source  of  fric- 
tion, for  the  Indians  resented  that  use.  As  soon  as  state 
governments  were  organized  roads  were  laid  out  over 
these  traces;  and  the  United  States  government  made 
these  trails  available.  Thus,  the  Chickasaws  had  a trail 
leading  from  about  where  Natchez,  Mississippi,  now  is 
on  to  the  Cumberland  River  where  Nashville  is  now 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


73 


situated,  and  the  trail  led  thence  onward  to  the  Atlantic 
seaboard,  over  which  the  Chickasaws  traveled.  It  be- 
came very  necessary  both  for  military  and  civil  purposes 
to  have  a road  over  which  wagons  could  pass  from  the 
growing  settlement  on  the  Cumberland  to  the  settlement 
at  Natchez  on  the  Mississippi,  and  after  long  negotia- 
tions and  much  difficulty,  the  United  States  finally  in- 
duced the  Chickasaws,  at  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  to  enter 
into  the  treaty  of  October  26,  1801,  by  which  the  Chick- 
asaws granted  to  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
permission 

“to  lay  out,  open  and  make  a convenient  wagon 
road  through  their  lands  between  the  settlement 
of  Mero  District  in  the  State  of  Tennessee,  and 
those  of  Natchez  in  the  Mississippi  Territory,  in 
such  way  and  manner  as  he  may  deem  proper ; and 
the  same  shall  be  a highway  for  the  United  States 
and  the  Chickasaws.” 

The  ferries  crossing  all  streams  were  reserved  by 
the  Indians  as  these  at  that  time  were  valuable. 

General  Andrew  Jackson  laid  out  the  road,  follow- 
ing the  Indian  trail,  which  remained  in  use  until  super- 
seded by  the  advent  of  railroads  and  steamboats. 

This  celebrated  Natchez  trail  was  crossed  by  the  no 
less  important  trail  to  the  Chickasaws  than  that  com- 
mencing at  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs  on  the  Mississippi 
River,  and  running  thence  southwardly  to  the  Gulf  coast 
where  Mobile,  Alabama,  now  is,  and  this  great  Chicka- 
saw highway  will  next  be  noticed. 

If  you  look  into  the  history  of  James  Adair,  pub- 
lished in  London  in  1775,  and  their  best  early  historian, 


74 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


or  nearly  any  book  of  reference,  you  will  see  it  stated 
that  the  Chickasaws  were  seated  in  North  Mississippi 
near  where  Pontotoc  now  is,  160  miles  from  the  Missis- 
sippi River,  some  of  them  saying,  from  the  river  at  the 
Chickasaw  Bluffs.  In  a direct  line  it  is  not  100  miles 
from  Memphis  to  Pontotoc,  and  I was  puzzled  for  some 
time  to  understand  how  the  Indian  trail  could  be  160 
miles  long  between  those  points. 

The  explanation  is  that  the  old  chroniclers  in  giving 
the  distance  computed  it  according  to  the  great  trail  of 
the  Chickasaws,  which  could  be  used  at  all  seasons  of 
the  year,  and  of  course  along  high  ground  and  the  crest 
of  a ridge  nearly  all  the  way.  Thus,  by  leaving  the 
Chickasaw  Bluff  and  crossing  Wolf  River  near  Memphis 
at  Raleigh,  where  the  high  land  comes  down  in  an  abrupt 
precipice  to  the  water,  or  even  nearer  Memphis,  you  can 
travel  almost  dry  shod  to  Hardeman  County  near  Boli- 
var; and  thence  taking  the  crest  of  the  well  known  Pon- 
totoc ridge  southward  you  will  pass  over  the  highest 
ground  in  all  Mississippi,  about  700  feet  above  the  sea, 
lying  in  Tippah  County;  and  thence  on  to  Pontotoc,  and 
during  all  this  journey  you  will  scarcely  cross  a stream, 
a distance  of  about  160  miles. 

In  Vol.  I Centenary  Series  (p.  467),  George  J.  Left- 
wich  has  an  interesting  article  entitled  “Some  Main 
Traveled  Roads,  Including  Cross-sections  of  Natchez 
Trace”;  and  speaking  of  the  Chickasaw  highway  trail 
from  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs  to  their  home  in  North  Mis- 
sissippi, and  leading  onward  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  at 
Mobile,  he  says : 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


75 


“On  the  attached  map  is  plainly  marked  out 
also  the  Bolivar  Indian  trail,  which  ran  from  Mem- 
phis to  Mobile,  by  way  of  the  Chickasaw  towns  in 
Lee  County,  and  down  the  Tombigbee  River  to 
St.  Stevens  and  Mobile ; from  the  Chickasaw  towns 
near  Tupelo,  it  passed  northwest  by  Ripley,  by 
Bolivar,  Tennessee,  on  to  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs. 
The  Bolivar  trail  was  the  route  of  travel  followed 
by  the  Indians  and  pioneers,  leading  from  the  Tom- 
bigbee country  by  way  of  Bolivar  to  Fort  Adams 
(now  Memphis)  on  the  Mississippi;  and  afforded 
access  for  the  Chickasaws  and  Choctaws  to  West 
Tennessee,  which  was  known  as  the  common  hunt- 
ing ground  for  the  Indians  who  lived  in  Kentucky 
on  the  north,  and  the  Chickasaws  and  Choctaws  on 
the  South.  Williams,  in  his  ‘Old  Times  in  West 
Tennessee,’  says  that  this  road  was  pursued  cir- 
cuitously in  order  to  avoid  the  crossing  of  the 
streams  so  numerous  in  the  country  farther  south, 
which  largely  trend  westward  towards  the  Holly 
Springs  country,  which  were  harder  to  cross ; Indi- 
ans always  avoid  as  much  as  possible  water  courses” 
(see  p.  467). 

Note  that  it  is  said  the  waters  trend  westward  to- 
wards the  Holly  Springs  country,  and  this  is  correct, 
for  the  headwaters  of  both  the  Tallahatchie  and  Cold- 
water  rivers  commence  in  the  Tippah  highlands.  It 
should  also  be  noted  that  the  highlands  of  Tippah,  the 
highest  in  the  state,  extend  an  elbow  or  a spur  down  into 
Marshall  County,  embracing  Holly  Springs,  and  over 
this  high  elbow  or  spur  and  across  adjacent  streams  and 
their  bottoms  the  Chickasaw  short-cut,  or  dry  weather 
trail  ran,  this  trail  running  in  almost  a straight  north- 
west direction  from  the  seat  of  the  Chickasaws  in  what 
is  now  Pontotoc  County  to  the  fourth  Chickasaw  Bluff, 


76 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


the  entrepot  of  that  Nation.  Here  a neck  of  high  land 
projects  itself  to  the  edge  of  the  river,  making  a high 
precipitous  bluff,  the  high  land  stretching  back  in  the 
shape  of  a fan,  making  the  bluffs  an  ideal  place  for  a 
permanent  landing  of  rare  value  to  the  Indians,  and  a 
place  whereon  to  build  a great  city;  hence  the  subse- 
quent location  of  Memphis  here,  often  called  the  Bluff 
City. 

These  short  cut  trails  were  indispensable  to  the  In- 
dians, for  the  news  of  an  invasion  or  other  matter  of 
great  importance  could  only  be  carried  by  a messenger 
running  on  foot,  and  the  Chickasaws  were  celebrated  in 
this  respect.  Thus,  Adair  tells  of  a young  Chickasaw, 
who,  on  an  emergency,  and  being  pursued,  ran  from 
where  Mobile,  Alabama,  is  now  located  (a  distance  of 
300  computed  miles)  in  42  hours;  whereas  Adair  says 
he  could  scarcely  make  the  same  trip  in  140  hours,  though 
riding  a very  superior  saddle  horse.  This  Indian  car- 
ried no  provisions,  depending  upon  such  herbs  as  he  could 
snatch  up  on  the  way  for  sustenance,  and  yet  not  allow- 
ing him  a moment  to  eat  or  to  sleep,  he  traveled  night 
and  day  at  an  average  rate  of  over  seven  miles  an  hour 
for  forty-two  consecutive  hours ! 

When  D’Artaguette  came  from  Canada  down  the 
Mississippi  in  1736,  with  his  French  and  Indian  army, 
for  the  avowed  purpose  of  joining  Bienville’s  army  com- 
ing from  the  South  to  annihilate  the  Chickasaws,  he 
landed  his  army  at  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  and  proceeded 
thence  to  the  seat  of  the  Chickasaws  in  North  Mississippi, 
where  both  armies  suffered  an  inglorious  defeat  at  the 
hands  of  the  invincible  Chickasaws. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


77 


In  the  discussion  of  any  subject  it  is  well  to  have 
• correct  data  as  a foundation  on  which  to  proceed;  and 
as  this  has  been  somewhat  difficult  to  obtain  with  respect 
to  the  topography  of  the  country  in  question,  I will  set 
it  down  for  the  benefit  of  those  who  may  prefer  accuracy 
to  mere  speculation  or  rhetoric. 

In  a letter  to  me  of  date  October  3,  1918,  Dr.  E.  N. 
Lowe,  the  efficient  geologist  of  Mississippi,  says: 

“1.  The  annual  rainfall  in  the  latitude  of  Holly 
Springs  is  50  inches,  pretty  evenly  distributed 
over  the  region  of  Marshall  and  adjacent  hill 
counties. 

2.  From  my  own  measurements  the  highest  point 

in  Mississippi  is  at  Blue  Mountain,  the  Bald 
Knob,  a few  hundred  yards  northeast  of 
Mississippi  Heights  School,  rising  to  690 
feet  above  sea  level.  I have  been  informed 
that  a point  near  Iuka  rises  to  more  than  700 
feet,  and  I am  inclined  to  believe  this,  though 
I do  not  know  that  it  is  true.  Dr.  F.  T.  Car- 
mack of  Iuka  claims  to  have  seen  the  altitude 
taken  by  government  engineers. 

3.  The  highlands  about  Holly  Springs  seems  to  be 

independent  of  the  Tippah  highlands,  sep- 
arated from  that  ridge  at  the  nearest  point 
by  about  20  miles  of  lower  intervening  re- 
gions. 

4.  Altitude  of  railroad  station  at  Holly  Springs  is 

602  feet ; a mile  south  of  the  station  the  rail- 
road track  rises  considerably  higher.” 

To  the  same  effect  I received  a letter  from  Dr.  W. 
T.  Lowrey,  the  well  known  president  of  Blue  Mountain 
College,  which  was  founded  by  General  M.  P.  Lowrey, 


78 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


the  father  of  W.  T.  Lowrey,  in  1873.  The  large  hill 
called  Blue  Mountain  acquired  that  name  in  the  remote 
past,  and  long  before  the  college  was  located  there.  Dr. 
Lowrey  says  he  was  told  that  the  name  originated  with 
the  young  people  of  Ripley  before  the  Civil  War,  when 
they  drove  through  the  country  from  Ripley  to  visit 
Colonel  Brougher’s  family,  who  lived  in  a palatial  resi- 
dence which  was  located  where  the  main  dormitory  of 
Blue  Mountain  College  is  now  situated,  commanding  a 
fine  view  of  the  surrounding  country. 

It  is  almost  needless  to  add  that  the  name  Blue 
Mountain  originated  from  the  beautiful  blue  mountain- 
ous view  here  afforded.  As  might  be  expected,  the  adja- 
cent country  abounds  in  many  bold  springs  of  clear  free- 
stone, wholesome  water,  making  the  country  very  attrac- 
tive and  healthful,  and  an  ideal  location  for  an  educa- 
tional institution. 

C.  C.  Pashby,  for  many  years  was  connected  with 
the  engineer’s  office  of  Memphis,  and  for  sometime  has 
been  the  city  clerk,  and  is  a man  of  accurate  informa- 
tion, and  in  a recent  letter  he  says: 

“Replying  to  your  inquiries  concerning  the  alti- 
tude of  Memphis  above  the  river  and  above  the  gulf, 
annual  rainfall,  etc. : 

I beg  to  advise  that  the  following  points  are 
given,  together  with  their  elevation  above  the  zero 
point  on  the  river  gauge,  and  the  elevation  above 
the  mean  level  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico: 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


79 


Above  Zero  Above  Gulf 
River  Gage.  Mexico. 


Madison  and  Front 

88 

270 

Jackson  Mounds  (De  Soto  Pk) 

102 

284 

Bellevue  & K.  C.  Junction 

136 

318 

Mississippi  & Trigg 

138 

320 

Tri-State  Fair 

134 

316 

S.  W.  Corner  Overton  Park 

100 

282 

The  Zero  gage  referred  to  is  the  lowest  point  where 
the  river  is  supposed  to  have  reached,  at  a date  back  in  the 
eighteen-seventies ; though  I have  heard  that  it  went  some 
two  or  three  feet  lower  since  then. 

I have  consulted  some  of  the  United  States  Re- 
ports in  an  effort  to  find  the  elevation  of  Holly 
Springs,  but  have  been  unable  to  do  so.  However, 
I did  learn  that  the  elevation  of 

Tupelo  is  279  feet; 

Jackson,  Tenn.  396  feet; 

Grand  Junction  582  feet. 

The  rainfall  in  this  locality  varies  from  about 
33  inches  to  a record  of  something  like  72  inches 
with  an  average  of  about  45.” 

It  will  be  noted  that  there  are  considerable  differ- 
ences in  the  altitude  of  nearby  places  in  Memphis,  a fact 
to  which  I will  refer  further  on,  when  I will  show  that 
the  criticism  of  Prof.  Lewis  as  to  statements  made  by 
Garcilaso  de  la  Vega  with  reference  to  the  topography 
of  the  country  where  De  Soto  discovered  the  Mississippi, 
has  no  foundation  upon  which  to  rest. 

But  to  return  to  a consideration  of  the  Chickasaw 
country,  we  find  that  the  Chickasaws  were  located  on  the 
Pontotoc  ridge,  which  increased  in  altitude  going  north 


80 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


reaching  its  highest  point  in  the  Tippah  highlands  and 
extending  still  further  northward  into  Tennessee.  This 
high  land  or  ridge  divides  the  waters  flowing  into  the 
Mississippi  from  those  flowing  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico; 
or  it  may  be  termed  the  height  of  land  between  these 
two  great  water  sheds. 

All  of  the  country  to  the  west  of  this  height  of  land 
quite  uniformly  slopes  downward  toward  the  Mississippi 
River ; and  as  might  be  supposed  the  streams  flow  west- 
ward, those  in  Mississippi  taking  a trend  southward  as 
they  approach  the  river. 

W e thus  have  these  natural  conditions : a warm 
climate;  a heavy  annual  rainfall,  and  a gradually  de- 
scending water  shed,  the  soil  of  which  has  in  it  much 
sand,  some  of  it  impalpably  fine,  nevertheless  sand.  The 
rain  and  sunshine  operating  upon  this  country  as  the 
seasons  succeed  each  other  could  not  fail  to  wear  down 
the  country  into  a broken  appearance,  with  almost  in- 
numerable small  streams  and  many  more  or  less  consider- 
able streams,  and  with  very  rich  alluvial  bottoms.  The 
sandy  soil  washing  down  with  leaves  and  vegetable  mat- 
ter gradually  extended  these  bottoms  and  from  this  rich 
soil  spring  giant  white  oaks,  red  oaks  and  many  other 
oaks,  besides  immense  gums,  hickories,  ash,  poplar,  cy- 
press and  many  other  varieties  of  the  finest  timber  to  be 
found  in  any  country. 

This  was  precisely  the  character  of  country  over 
which  De  Soto  passed. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


81 


The  Short-Cut  Trail,  or  Pigeon  Roost  Road — 

Having  referred  to  the  long  trail  which  could  be 
used  to  the  best  advantage  at  all  seasons  of  the  year  and 
in  all  kinds  of  weather,  I will  now  call  attention  to  what 
for  a better  name  I will  call  the  short-cut  trail,  which 
was  the  shortest  route  or  way  between  the  Chickasaw’s 
home  in  North  Mississippi,  and  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs. 

Under  the  Chickasaw  treaties  of  1832  and  1834,  all 
of  the  Chickasaw  cession  was  laid  off  into  sections,  and 
the  roads  in  Mississippi  run  on  section  lines,  except  where 
the  roads  of  the  white  man  adopted  the  Indian  trails, 
and  the  Pigeon  Roost  Road  falls  into  the  excepted  class, 
because  it  follows  the  ancient  Chickasaw  trail.  It  will 
now  be  described. 

This  road  was  laid  out  by  the  Shelby  County  Court 
in  1828,  when  there  was  scarcely  a handful  of  people 
in  the  then  village  of  Memphis,  and  it  ran  along  the 
Chickasaw  short-trail  or  trace.  The  description  of  the 
road,  as  officially  laid  off,  commences  where  Adams 
Street  intersects  Bayou  Gayoso,  the  then  corporate  lim- 
its of  the  village,  and  after  proceeding  in  a southeast- 
erly direction  with  various  calls  and  courses,  it  proceeds 
thus : “Thence  with  said  line  of  blaze  bearing  south- 
eastwardly  to  the  old  Chickasaw  trace  on  top  of  a ridge; 
thence  with  the  said  trace  occasionally  straightening  the 
same  on  good  ground,  to  the  northeast  side  of  a lagoon 
in  the  bottom  (the  lagoon  evidently  being  in  Nonconnah 
bottom),  thence  with  a line  of  chops  and  blazes  to  the 
creek  (evidently  Nonconnah)  a short  distance  below 
the  ford  on  the  old  trace;  thence  up  the  bank  of  the 


82 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


creek  to  the  old  trace,  and  with  it  cutting  across  some 
lands  as  above  to  where  the  same  crosses  the  State  Line.” 

By  actual  measurements  recently  made,  Nonconnah 
bottom  begins  eight  miles  from  Second  and  Adams 
Streets,  opposite  the  Court  House  in  Memphis,  passing 
along  the  old  Chickasaw  trail,  as  near  as  that  can  be  now 
traveled  in  the  city,  and  then  along  the  line  of  the  pres- 
ent Pigeon  Boost  Road.  Nonconnah  is  a considerable 
creek,  and  was  much  larger  before  the  country  was  settled. 
In  high  water  even  at  this  day,  the  creek  is  often  a 
mile  wide  and  anciently  its  bottom  was  filled  with  lagoons 
and  cypress  brakes,  and  difficult  to  cross  except  under 
most  favorable  conditions.  To  my  knowledge  during 
the  Civil  War  the  four  long  bridges  over  the  sloughs, 
and  the  one  over  the  main  stream,  were  down,  at  least 
the  most  of  them  were,  and  a ferry  was  maintained 
across  the  main  stream  over  which  I often  passed.  In 
the  winter  the  road  became  so  out  of  repair  that  for 
days  and  days  no  vehicle  could  pass  over  it.  Noncon- 
nah bottom  was  then  infested  by  robbers,  and  three  Fed- 
eral soldiers  were  court-martialed  and  shot  for  commit- 
ting rape  in  that  dreaded  bottom,  my  father  Dr.  Frank- 
lin J.  Malone,  being  a witness  at  the  trial  in  Memphis. 
My  father  died  January  24,  1873,  and  I rode  from  Mem- 
phis to  the  old  home  just  across  the  line  in  De  Soto 
County  on  horseback,  as  no  vehicles  were  then  passing 
over  the  road,  it  being  difficult  to  pass  on  horseback,  that 
winter  being  an  exceptionally  bad  one. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


83 


On  July  21,  1918,  I rode  in  my  auto  from  Mem- 
phis to  Holly  Springs,  a distance  of  47.9  miles,  care- 
fully noting  the  water  courses  crossed  by  the  Pigeon 
Roost  Road,  and  I do  not  think  that  it  can  be  surpassed 
for  its  many  windings,  turnings  and  constant  changes 
of  courses,  thus  demonstrating  its  Indian  origin. 

Leaving  the  Court  House  at  Memphis,  Nonconnah 
bottom  was  reached  at  eight  miles,  after  descending 
Brown’s  hill,  formerly  rising  abruptly  to  high  land,  and 
this  high  land  extends  to  Memphis.  The  bottom  is  a 
little  over  one  mile  wide,  and  emerging  from  this  bot- 
tom the  land  is  not  high  for  some  miles,  but  low,  and 
formerly  swampy.  This  low  level  land  may  be  desig- 
nated according  to  local  description,  as  second  bottom 
lands,  and  extends  from  the  true  or  low  bottom  lands, 
about  two  miles,  passing  through  the  village  of  Oakville 
(formerly  called  Shakerag),  and  to  a small  creek  or 
large  branch  with  a good  sized  bottom,  and  then  the 
road  goes  up  on  rolling  land.  Further  on  Ten-Mile 
branch  is  crossed,  its  name  implying  its  distance  from 
Memphis.  Capleville  is  reached  at  thirteen  miles,  and  by 
it,  or  rather  where  it  now  stands,  there  flowed  in  1859. 
and  for  years  thereafter  to  my  knowledge,  a beautiful 
creek  with  delightful  fish  in  it.  Today  what  is  left  of 
it  forms  a big  ditch  not  made  by  nature,  but  by  the 
hand  of  man,  about  one-eighth  of  a mile  to  the  north, 
in  which  you  may  sometimes  see  a muddy  conglomerate 
to  which  the  phrase  may  be  applied,  “as  dull  as  ditch 
water.”  The  fate  of  this  stream  on  the  upper  waters 
of  which,  three  miles  distant,  in  my  boyhood  days  I 


84 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


swam  and  sported,  catching  beautiful  fish,  is  the  com- 
mon fate  of  all  the  streams  through  this  section  of  the 
country.  A few  hundred  yards  beyond  Capleville  an- 
other creek  is  crossed. 

I will  now  give  the  small  creeks  and  distances 
crossed  from  Memphis  to  Holly  Springs  from  this  point. 

At  the  State  Line,  15.5  miles;  17.6  miles;  18.3 
miles  (Olive  Branch  passed)  ; 20.8  miles;  23.8  miles  (at 
Miller’s!  ; 25.6  miles  (this  is  Coldwater  River,  with  a 
bottom  one  mile  wide)  ; 29.3  miles  (Byhalia  passed, 
30.1),  and  at  30.9  miles  (Byhalia  Creek),  and  31.7  miles 
(Byhalia  Creek  again  crossed,  at  least  this  was  the 
name  given  me)  ; 34  miles;  34.7  miles,  good  sized  creek 
near  Victoria  (passing  Red  Banks  at  39  miles)  ; 40.4 
miles;  41.8  miles;  42.8  miles  (good  size);  43.7  miles 
(good  size)  ; thence  to  Holly  Springs,  47.9  miles,  from  the 
point  of  beginning,  which  was  opposite  the  Court  House 
in  Memphis. 

I need  scarcely  add  that  every  stream  crossed  has 
its  bottom  more  or  less  wide,  according  to  its  size,  and 
the  abruptness  of  the  hills  rising  from  its  bosom. 

These  bottoms  were  veritable  wildernesses  to  any- 
one compelled  to  cross  them  before  the  country  was 
settled  up. 

One  of  the  most  notable  features  of  the  landscape 
that  could  not  fail  to  attract  the  attention  of  any  obser- 
vant person,  was  the  beautiful  view  afforded  about  two 
miles  from  Holly  Springs,  approaching  that  city  on  the 
Pigeon  Roost  Road  from  the  northwest.  The  road  leads 
up  to  the  brow  of  a long  hill,  and  the  outlines  of  the  city 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


85 


can  be  faintly  seen  in  the  distance,  and  apparently  with 
a mountainous  background,  and  with  intervening  low- 
lands between  the  observer  and  the  city.  Or,  expressed 
in  other  words,  the  city  was  apparently  silhouetted  upon 
the  horizon,  with  a mountainous  background;  a very 
pleasing  view  to  those  who  live  in  a comparatively  flat 
country.  This  feature  of  the  landscape,  will  be  found 
to  be  very  important  when  we  come  to  carefully  con- 
sider the  descriptions  given  by  the  various  narratives  of 
the  country  over  which  De  Soto  marched  his  army. 

It  is  also  an  undeniable  fact  that  upon  the  ridges 
and  little  plateaus  throughout  this  region,  there  were 
numerous  depressions,  locally  called  ponds,  which  are 
well  described  in  the  words  of  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas, 
as  “pondy  places,”  “basins  or  lakes.”  Sometimes  these 
pondy  places  covered  say  only  an  acre,  with  aquatic 
plants  and  shrubs  in  them,  drying  up  in  midsummer; 
while  others  were  deeper,  and  covered  some  acres,  were 
clear  of  all  trees  or  shrubs  and  could  be  designated  as 
lakes ; and  on  these,  numerous  ducks  and  other  wild  fowl 
found  feeding  places,  and  they  never  dried  up.  The  river 
and  larger  bottoms  were  literally  covered  with  lagoons, 
and  what  are  locally  called  cypress  brakes,  many  of  them 
containing  deep  water  throughout  the  year,  having  soft 
mud  bottoms  and  over  which  it  was  extremely  difficult  to 
pass. 

In  reference  to  the  cypress  brakes,  as  they  are  locally 
called,  it  may  be  stated  that  they  abounded  in  all  the 
the  bottoms  similar  to  that  of  Nonconnah,  and  deserve 
further  notice.  There  are  in  the  old  world,  as  well  as 


86 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


in  America,  many  species  of  cypress,  but  the  discovery 
in  the  Southern  states  of  this  country  of  what  is  called 
“Swamp  Cypress,”  or  “Bald  Cypress,”  was  a distinct 
surprise  to  botanists  and  naturalists  in  general.  It  is 
one  of  the  loftiest  trees,  grows  to  a height  of  170 
feet,  and  of  such  massive  trunks  as  to  be  sometimes 
from  ten  to  fifteen  feet  in  diameter,  and  usually  grows 
in  or  near  water,  or  on  low  land  subject  to  frequent 
inundations.  More  than  one  hundred  years  ago  Bartram 
said  of  it: 

“This  cypress  is  in  the  first  order  of  North 
American  trees.  Its  majestic  stature  is  surprising. 
On  approaching  we  are  struck  with  a kind  of  awe 
at  beholding  the  stateliness  of  its  trunk,  lifting  its 
cumbrous  top  towards  the  sky  and  casting  a wide 
shadow  on  the  ground,  as  a dark,  intervening  cloud, 
which  from  time  to  time  excludes  the  rays  of  the 
sun.  The  delicacy  of  its  color  and  the  texture  of 
its  leaves  exceed  everything  in  vegetation.” 

It  is  said  to  be  remarkable  in  that  it  is  little  affected 
by  the  dryness  or  excessive  moisture  in  the  atmosphere, 
for  on  the  same  tree  different  forms  of  branches  and 
foliage  will  sometimes  be  found  to  exist,  which  are 
capable  of  either  aiding  or  preventing  the  escape  of 
moisture. 

Another  remarkable  thing  about  this  Southern 
cypress,  is  a large  conical  excrescence  which  rises  from 
the  roots  of  the  tree,  called  cypress  knees,  the  cause  or 
reason  for  their  growth  being  unknown,  and  as  to  which 
much  speculation  has  been  indulged.  They  are  hollow, 
and  where  the  tree  grows  in  water  the  knees  rise  above 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


87 


the  surface,  there  sometimes  being  as  many  as  one  hun- 
dred under  a tree.  Where  the  tree  grows  on  land  not 
submerged,  there  are  no  knees.  Some  cypress  brakes  in 
large  bottoms  were  miles  long  and  wide;  and  it  can  be 
readily  seen  that  where  the  ground  was  submerged  and 
with  knees  interspersed,  it  would  form  an  almost  im- 
passable barrier. 

The  wood  of  this  cypress  was  and  is  extremely  valu- 
able for  shingles,  which  last  for  forty  years,  besides,  it 
was  much  used  for  fencing,  interior  paneling  for  doors, 
windows,  etc.,  hence  it  was  one  of  the  first  giants  of 
the  forest  to  fall  under  the  woodman’s  ax,  and  now,  alas, 
they  have  nearly  disappeared  from  the  bottoms  of  our 
upland  country. 

There  is  one  lone  sentinel,  like  a spectre  of  the 
past,  growing  out  of  the  north  bank  of  Nonconnah,  a 
few  inches  from  the  west  side  of  the  iron  bridge  on  the 
Pigeon  Roost  Road,  and  evidently  spared  because  the 
bridge  would  lodge  against  it,  in  case  it  should  be  moved 
by  a great  flood.  It  is  a double  or  twin  tree,  and  while 
not  one  of  the  giants  of  its  tribe,  still  gives  some  faint 
idea  of  what  those  monarchs  of  the  forest  were  like. 

A few  feet  below  this  same  bridge  there  will  also 
be  seen  a miniature  island  in  midstream,  on  which  small 
trees  are  growing.  The  passing  throng  would  never 
suppose  that  as  late  as  during  the  Civil  War  there  was 
not  only  no  island  there,  but  in  its  place  there  was  a 
wide  expanse  of  water  on  whose  bosom  a ferry  boat 
crossed  and  recrossed,  carrying  wagons,  buggies,  horses, 
men  and  everything  that  traveled,  for  which  the  trav- 


88 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


eling  public  were  compelled  to  pay  exorbitant  ferriage 
fees.  Now  a man  could  jump  from  one  side  of  the 
creek  to  the  other  side  almost,  without  wetting  his  feet ; 
and  still  Dr.  Rowland  thinks  the  topography  of  the  coun- 
try is  the  same.  I can  scarcely  ever  cross  the  bridge 
referred  to  without  casting  a glance  at  the  lone  tree- 
sentinel  and  the  little  miniature  island ; and  mute  wit- 
nesses though  they  be,  yet  to  me  they  speak  in  trumpet 
tones  of  the  mutability  of  all  worldly  things,  and  of 
the  infinite  future  to  which  we  are  fleeing  with  such 
incredible  swiftness  that  even  the  scenes  of  our  child- 
hood days  seem  like  phantoms  of  the  past! 

Some  time  since  application  was  made  to  convert  all 
of  Nonconnah  and  its  bottoms  into  a drainage  district, 
and  some  technicality  has  delayed  the  proceeding;  but, 
sooner  or  later,  the  Gordian  knot  will  be  cut,  and  a dull 
ditch  will  be  all  that  is  left  of  the  majestic  stream,  once 
known  as  Nonconnah. 

In  the  fall  of  1917,  and  previous  thereto,  I rode  in 
an  auto  from  Holly  Springs  in  the  main  southeastward 
direction,  towards  Pontotoc,  and  crossed  Chewalla  Creek 
(quite  a stream),  the  main  branch  of  Tippah  Creek, 
sometimes  called  Tippah  River,  and  crossing  to  the  south- 
west of  the  Frisco  road  at  Potts  Camp,  we  then  crossed 
another  affluent  of  Tippah ; these  considerable  creek  bot- 
toms having  the  main  characteristics  of  the  country  from 
Holly  Springs  to  Memphis,  and  in  addition,  the  country 
had  a more  mountainous  and  picturesque  appearance, 
owing  to  the  many  hills  rising  abruptly  from  the  bot- 


toms. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


89 


Since  the  foregoing  was  written,  viz.,  on  Decem- 
ber 1,  1918,  again  I went  over  the  same  road;  C.  H. 
Curd,  long  time  editor  of  the  Holly  Springs  Reporter, 
being  a member  of  the  party. 

After  we  had  crossed  the  Kansas  City  or  Frisco 
Railroad  at  Potts  Camp,  going  southwest,  and  then 
crossed  quite  considerable  creek  bottoms,  we  ascended 
some  high  hills,  rising  abruptly  from  the  bottom  land. 

After  going  some  two  to  three  miles  further,  the 
ground  was  still  higher,  and  Mr.  Curd  pointed  out  to 
us  the  top  of  a distant  ridge,  which  he  said  was  four- 
teen miles  from  us,  and  was  the  site  of  Holly  Springs. 

He  went  with  us  to  a high  hill  one  mile  west  of 
Holly  Springs,  locally  called  Rocky  Mountain,  because 
of  its  height  and  the  presence  on  its  top  of  large  sand 
stones,  some  ten  feet  in  length  and  nearly  as  wide,  a 
very  unusual  geologic  feature  for  that  section. 

Pigeon  Roost  Creek  and  the  Pigeons — 

The  names,  Pigeon  Roost  Road,  and  Pigeon  Roost 
Creek  carry  with  them  a meaning  with  respect  to  the 
country  which  furnished  these  names,  if  we  but  consider 
attentively  those  words.  At  the  risk  of  being  charged 
with  a digression,  I will  linger  to  consider  these  names 
and  what  they  imply;  especially  as  this  digression  will 
involve  characteristics  of  the  Chickasaw  country,  now  our 
country;  for  it  is  unfortunately  true  that  we  give  more 
attention  to  the  histories,  appearances  and  stories  of  for- 
eign countries,  than  to  that  of  our  own,  it  matters  not 


90 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


how  interesting  our  own  country,  past  and  present  may 
be. 

The  disappearance  of  the  vast  hosts  of  wild  pigeons, 
whose  flights  in  the  heavens  once  almost  obscured  the 
light  of  the  sun  at  noon,  has  proven  one  of  the  mysteries 
of  nature. 

Their  sudden  disappearance  from  the  face  of  the 
earth  in  modern  times  remains  an  unsolved  problem.  I 
remember  as  a small  boy  to  have  seen  in  1859  innumer- 
able numbers  of  these  wild  pigeons  in  flight,  and  they 
appeared  to  be  fond  of  lighting  in  the  large  oak  trees, 
especially  white  oaks,  and  I was  told  that  they  were 
feeding  upon  acorns.  They  chose  the  largest  and  strong- 
est trees  for  a roost,  because  their  great  weight  would 
tear  down  and  strip  the  strongest  monarchs  of  the  forest. 

In  Lincecum’s  autobiography  already  referred  to,  he 
describes  the  great  destruction  to  the  timber  in  the  Choc- 
taw country,  just  south  of  the  Chickasaw  country,  where 
ever  the  pigeons  had  a roost.  As  like  causes  produce  like 
results,  the  immensity  of  these  pigeon  roosts  and  the 
consequent  destruction  produced  thereby  at  one  place 
furnishes  a description  where  other  roosts  took  place; 
and  I will  here  insert  excerpts  from  famous  nature  writ- 
ers, the  accuracy  of  whose  observations  cannot  be 
doubted : 

“The  associated  numbers  of  wild  pigeons,  the 
numerous  flocks  which  compose  the  general  swarm, 
are  without  any  other  parallel  in  the  history  of  the 
feathered  race;  they  can  indeed  alone  be  compared 
to  the  finny  shoals  of  herrings,  which,  descending 
from  the  Arctic  regions,  discolor  and  fill  the  ocean 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


91 


to  the  extent. of  mighty  kingdoms.  * * * The 

approach  of  the  mighty  feathered  army  with  a loud 
rushing  roar  and  a stirring  breeze,  attended  by  a 
sudden  darkness,  might  be  mistaken  for  a fearful 
tornado  about  to  overwhelm  the  face  of  Nature. 
For  several  hours  together  the  vast  host,  extending 
some  miles  in  breadth,  still  continues  to  pass  in  flocks, 
without  diminution.  The  whole  air  is  filled  with 
birds ; * * * they  shut  out  the  light  as  if  it  were 
an  eclipse.  At  the  approach  of  the  hawk  their  sub- 
lime and  beautiful  aerial  evolutions  are  disturbed 
like  a ruffling  squall  extending  over  the  placid 
ocean ; as  a thundering  torrent  they  rush  together  in 
a concentrating  mass,  and  heaving  in  undulating  and 
glittering  sweeps  towards  the  earth,  at  length  again 
proceed  in  lofty  meanders  like  the  rushing  of  a 
mighty  animated  river.  * * * 

In  the  Atlantic  States,  where  the  flocks  are  less 
abundant,  the  gun,  decoy,  and  net  are  put  in  opera- 
tion against  the  devoted  throng.  Twenty  or  even 
thirty  dozen  have  been  caught  at  a single  sweep  of 
the  net.  Wagonloads  of  them  are  poured  into  mar- 
ket, where  they  are  sometimes  sold  for  no  more  than 
a cent  apiece.  * * * The  Honorable  T.  H.  Per- 
kins remarks  that  about  the  year  1798,  while  he  was 
passing  through  New  Jersey,  near  Newark,  the 
flocks  continued  to  pass  for  at  least  two  hours  with- 
out cessation ; and  he  learned  from  the  neighboring 
inhabitants  that  in  descending  upon  a large  pond  to 
drink,  those  in  the  rear,  alighting  on  the  backs  of 
the  first  that  arrived  (in  the  usual  order  of  their 
movements  on  land  to  feed),  pressed  them  beneath 
the  surface,  so  that  tens  of  thousands  were  thus 
drowned.  They  were  likewise  killed  in  great  num- 
bers at  the  roosts  with  clubs,”  Nuttall,  Vol.  II,  pp. 
3,  4,  6. 

Audubon  estimated  the  number  of  birds  in  one  of 
these  flocks  at  eleven  hundred  millions,  and  calculated 


92 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


that  they  would  require  more  than  eight  millions  of  bush- 
els of  seeds  and  grains  for  feed  each  day.  Another  flock 
seen  by  Wilson  was  greater  still.  He  judged  them  in 
flight,  to  extend  over  two  hundred  and  forty  miles.  He 
concluded  that  they  must  have  numbered  more  than 
twenty-two  hundreds  of  millions,  and  consumed  above 
seventeen  millions  of  bushels  of  seed  and  grains  daily. 

“As  the  sun  begins  to  decline,  they  depart  in  a 
body  for  the  general  roost,  which  is  often  hundreds 
of  miles  distant,  and  is  generally  chosen  in  the  tall- 
est and  thickest  forests,  almost  divested  of  under- 
wood. Nothing  can  exceed  the  waste  and  desola- 
tion of  these  nocturnal  resorts.  * * * The  tall 

trees  for  thousands  of  acres  are  completely  killed, 
and  the  ground  strewed  with  massy  branches  torn 
down  by  the  clustering  weight  of  the  birds  which 
have  rested  upon  them.  The  whole  region  for  sev- 
eral years  presents  a continued  scene  of  devastation, 

as  if  swept  by  the  resistless  blast  of  a whirlwind. 
* * * 

“The  breeding  places,  as  might  naturally  be 
expected,  differ  from  the  roosts  in  their  greater  ex- 
tent. In  1807,  according  to  Wilson,  one  of  these 
immense  nurseries,  near  Shelbyville,  in  Kentucky, 
was  several  miles  in  breadth  and  extended  through 
the  woods  for  upwards  of  forty  miles.  * * * 

Wilson  often  counted  upwards  of  ninety  nests  in  a 
single  tree,  and  the  whole  forest  was  filled  with 
them.  * * * But  their  most  destructive  enemy 

is  man ; and  as  soon  as  the  young  are  fully  grown, 
the  neighboring  inhabitants  assemble  and  encamp 
for  several  days  around  the  devoted  pigeons  with 
wagons,  axes,  and  cooking  utensils,  like  the  out- 
skirts of  a destructive  army.  The  perpetual  tumult 
of  the  birds,  the  crowding  and  fluttering  multitudes, 
the  thundering  roar  of  their  wings,  and  the  crash 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


93 


of  falling  trees,  from  which  the  young  are  thus  pre- 
cipitated to  the  ground  by  the  axe,  produces  alto- 
gether a scene  of  indescribable  and  almost  terrific 
confusion.  It  is  dangerous  to  walk  beneath  these 
clustering  crowds  of  birds,  from  the  frequent  de- 
scent of  large  branches  broken  down  by  the  con- 
gregating millions ; the  horses  start  at  the  noise,  and 
conversation  can  only  be  heard  in  a shout.” 

To  the  foregoing  extract  from  Nuttall’s  book  is  ap- 
pended the  following  note : 

“The  most  important  of  recent  contributions  to 
the  biography  of  this  species  is  Mr.  William  Brew- 
ster’s article  in  The  Auk  for  October,  1889.  He 
tells  there  of  a ‘nesting’  in  Michigan  in  1877  that 
covered  an  area  twenty-eight  miles  long  and  three 
to  four  miles  wide,  and  says : ‘For  the  entire  dis- 
tance of  twenty-eight  miles  every  tree  of  any  size 
had  more  or  less  nests,  and  many  trees  were  filled 
with  them.’  ” Nutall’s  Birds  of  the  United  States 
and  Canada,  Vol.  II,  pp.  4,  5,  7. 


L.  B.  Jones,  an  intelligent  citizen  somewhat  ad- 
vanced in  years,  and  who  lives  near  Holly  Springs,  in- 
formed me  that  his  grandfather  settled  on  Pigeon  Roost 
Creek  at  a very  early  date;  that  he  often  heard  both  his 
grandfather  and  father  relate  their  experiences  with  the 
wild  pigeons  which  in  the  years  long  passed,  roosted  in 
the  forests  of  Pigeon  Roost  Creek,  from  which  circum- 
stance the  creek  derived  its  name.  From  them  he  learned 
the  pigeons  came  in  vast  flocks,  lighting  on  the  limbs  of 
the  trees,  while  belated  ones  perched  on  the  backs  of 
those  who  arrived  first ; and  by  thus  piling  or  perching 


94 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


on  the  backs  of  each  other,  the  weight  of  the  pigeons 
became  so  great  as  to  strip  and  tear  down  some  of  the 
largest  trees  cf  the  forest. 

The  people  of  that  vicinity  would  go  to  the  roost 
and  bring  back  wagon  loads  of  the  pigeons,  whose  num- 
bers seemed  to  be  almost  infinite. 

Beaumont  M.  Stratton,  though  a Confederate  vet- 
eran with  many  scars  of  that  great  conflict  on  his  body,  is 
still  youthful  of  heart  and  vigorous  of  body,  and  as 
might  be  supposed,  having  reached  the  reminiscent  age, 
is  fond  of  recalling  his  early  recollections.  His  father, 
Major  Thomas  Stratton,  moved  from  Middle  Tennes- 
see to  the  southern  part  of  Shelby  County,  in  the  early 
fifties,  and  at  that  time  the  most  of  the  country  was  in 
woods  and  was  a wilderness. 

Mr.  Stratton  says  that  when  a boy  he  had  often  gone 
south  in  Mississippi  to  the  bottoms  of  Coldwater  River, 
and  there  saw  the  destruction  wrought  by  the  wild  pigeons 
to  the  great  forests  springing  from  the  rich  alluvial  soil. 
Many  of  the  smaller  trees  were  stripped  of  their  limbs 
and  broken  down,  while  many  monarchs  of  the  forest  had 
lost  great  limbs  and  were  so  stripped  of  their  branches 
as  to  present  mere  shadows  of  their  former  proportions. 

Mr.  Stratton  further  states  that  in  those  early  years 
the  wild  pigeons  were  still  passing  over  the  country  in 
great  flocks  of  incredible  numbers,  so  that  at  times  their 
numbers  were  so  great  as  to  obstruct  the  rays  of  the  sun, 
the  shadow  of  the  birds  falling  upon  the  earth  so  as  to 
give  the  appearance  of  twilight,  or  the  shades  of  eve- 
ning. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


95 


From  L.  B.  Jones  and  C.  H.  Curd,  mentioned  above, 
I also  learned  that  the  north  branch  of  Pigeon  Roost 
Creek  had  its  head  in  the  once  famous  Springs  which 
with  the  adjacent  holly  trees  gave  to  Holly  Springs  its 
name.  The  main  branch  of  the  creek,  however,  origi- 
nates beyond  or  south  of  Holly  Springs. 

From  these  gentlemen  and  Judge  J.  P.  Young,  of 
Memphis,  I learned  that  going  south  from  Memphis  on 
the  Pigeon  Roost  road,  it  deflects  at  Byhalia  from  the 
present  Holly  Springs  road,  trending  in  a more  south- 
ward direction,  leading  on  to  Chulahoma,  where  Judge 
Young  was  born,  and  leaving  Holly  Springs  about  six 
miles  to  the  east  of  its  course  opposite  that  city. 

This  is  in  entire  accord  with  Lusher’s  map. 

On  Lusher’s  map  of  1835  (hereinafter  more  par- 
ticularly referred  to)  the  streams  in  the  Chickasaw 
country  are  laid  down  with  more  detail  and  accuracy  than 
upon  any  other  map  before  or  since  that  time ; and  while 
nearly  all  the  streams  have  Indian  names  only,  Pigeon 
Roost  Creek  forms  an  exception,  and  had  on  this  map 
the  same  name  it  bears  to  this  day. 

The  fact  is  that  the  creek  was  so  named  on  account 
of  the  vast  pigeon  roosts  which  formerly  formed  a con- 
spicuous feature  of  its  heavily  timbered  bottoms;  and 
bear  in  mind  that  this  giant  timbered  country  was  the 
country  to  attract  the  pigeons  for  a roosting  place.  This 
roosting  place  must  have  been  famous  far  and  near,  for 
it  gave  not  only  its  name  to  the  large  creek  in  question, 
but  to  one  of  the  most  important  thoroughfares  leading 
to  Memphis,  a distance  of  some  fifty  miles. 


96 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Lusher’s  map  also  shows  that  the  short-cut  Indian 
trail  or  trace  crossed  the  head  waters  of  the  Pigeon 
Roost  Creek.  This  roost  was  undoubtedly  known  to  the 
Chickasaws,  for  nothing  of  this  character  escaped  their 
notice ; and  moreover,  it  was  doubtless  a great  asset  to 
them  where,  at  least  in  certain  years,  they  found  an  un- 
limited supply  of  most  palatable  and  wholesome  food. 
Indeed,  the  existence  of  this  roost  may  have  been  one  of 
the  reasons  for  a trail  passing  through  that  vicinity. 


The  Trail  from  Holly  Springs  to  New  Albany — 

Not  having  personally  traveled  over  the  former 
Chickasaw  trail  from  Holly  Springs  to  New  Albany,  I 
wrote  to  Judge  Charles  Lee  Crum,  of  New  Albany,  for  a 
description  of  that  part  of  the  country  and  received  the 
following  answer : 

“Before  describing  the  country  directly  from 
New  Albany  to  Holly  Springs,  I will  say  that  I was 
born  in  1867  where  the  village  of  Hickory  Flat  now 
is,  which  is  fourteen  miles  northwest  from  New  Al- 
bany, and  twenty  miles  southeast  from  Holly 
Springs.  My  grandfather,  Eli  Crum,  moved  onto 
his  farm  at  the  very  place  where  Hickory  Flat  now 
is,  in  December,  1837,  at  which  time  my  father,  W. 
A.  Crum,  was  an  infant  three  months  old.  This 
was  before  the  Indians  left.  My  father  owned  this 
place  until  his  death  in  A.  D.  1910.  So  you  can 
understand  that  having  for  years  held  this  as  the  pa- 
ternal home,  and  on  account  of  its  being  nearly 
midway  between  New  Albany  and  Holly  Springs 
and  having  lived  for  twenty-five  years  at  the  former 
place,  I have  had  opportunity  to  know  this  coun- 
try. Besides  being  a lawyer  by  profession,  I have 
since  my  boyhood  hunted  wild  game  considerably 
and  traveled  over  all  this  country  horseback  and 
otherwise. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


97 


I have  heard  my  father  say  repeatedly  that  the 
public  road  from  Memphis  to  Pontotoc  was  origi- 
nally laid  out  along  what  was  an  Indian  trail.  This 
highway  ran  from  Memphis  via  Holly  Springs, 
Potts  Camp,  Winbom,  about  three-fourths  mile 
north  of  where  Hickory  Flat  now  is,  crossed  Talla- 
hatchie River  about  three-fourths  mile  southwest  of 
the  court  house  in  New  Albany,  and  thence  to  the 
town  of  Pontotoc  and  covered  high  ground  except 
in  crossing  the  following  streams:  Chewalla,  Tip- 
pah River,  head  waters  of  Okalimetah,  Ayers  Creek 
(a  very  small  stream),  Big  Creek  (sometimes  called 
Hell  Creek),  and  Tallahatchie.  The  crossing  at  the 
time  of  the  earliest  recollections  of  white  settlers  on 
Tallahatchie  River,  before  bridges  were  built,  were 
only  two.  One  was  at  Rocky  Ford,  where  Etta 
postoffice  now  is.  The  other  was  three-fourths 
mile  southwest  of  New  Albany  Courthouse,  on 
what  is  now  my  farm  property  and  immediately  in 
the  rear  of  my  present  residence  which  is  known  as 
‘Riverside.’ 

There  is  a bluff  immediately  west  of  the  ford 
at  Rocky  Ford  and  there  has  been  to  my  personal 
knowledge  for  forty  years  a very  large  rock  just 
below  this  ford,  which  is  nearly  round  in  top  appear- 
ance and  which  projected  several  feet  above  the  low 
water  forty  years  ago.  The  rock  appears  to  have 
been  a boulder  which  rolled  down  from  off  this 
bluff.  The  hill  which  projects  to  the  river  here  and 
makes  this  bluff  has  numerous  such  rocks  on  it  now. 
It  is  about  twelve  miles  on  an  air  line  from  New  Al- 
bany to  Rocky  Ford.  I am  not  advised  whether 
there  was  an  Indian  trail  that  crossed  here,  but  it 
was  a ford  where  the  road  crossed  as  early  as  the 
white  settlers  settled  now  living  know.  The  river 
here  runs  on  the  south  side  of  the  low  bottom, 
which  low  land  is  about  one  mile  wide  and  many 
years  ago  was  very  slashv  on  north  half.  It  is  con- 
ceded that  De  Soto  fought  a battle  with  the  Indians 


98 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


who  had  a village  where  New  Albany  now  is,  after 
leaving  the  Indian  settlement  east  of  Pontotoc. 
From  New  Albany  to  Rocky  Ford,  to  travel  south 
of  Tallahatchie,  would,  in  De  Soto’s  time,  have  re- 
quired covering  a distance  of  twenty  or  thirty-five 
miles,  for  down  the  river  in  the  low  lands  was  very 
swampy  even  as  late  as  I can  remember  and  covered 
with  thick  canes,  rattan  and  other  vines  and  much 
undergrowth.  Besides  there  are  several  large 
creeks  that  run  into  Tallahatchie  from  the  south 
that  he  would  have  been  obliged  to  cross. 

Tallahatchie  bottom  at  New  Albany  is  less  than 
four  hundred  yards  wide  and  the  crossing  was  at  a 
swift  place  with  a solid  rock  bottom,  and  Esq. 
Reaves,  who  was  for  many  years  the  Mayor  of  New 
Albany,  has  told  me  that  an  Indian  ford  was  there 
before  the  white  man  used  it  in  the  early  settlement 
for  a public  highway.  Here  is  where  the  Memphis 
and  Pontotoc  road  first  crossed  Tallahatchie. 

From  all  I have  heard  and  read  on  the  course 
taken  by  De  Soto  I am  convinced  that,  after  fight- 
ing the  Indians  here  at  New  Albany,  he  crossed 
Tallahatchie  at  the  rock  bottom  ford  south  of  the 
town,  traveled  in  a northwest  direction  along  the 
trail  via  Hickory  Flat  (where  there  was  an  Indian 
village  on  my  grandfather’s  place  in  1837),  Potts 
Camp,  Holly  Springs  and  on  to  the  Chickasaw 
Bluffs  at  Memphis.  * * * 

On  each  side  of  the  river  near  this  ford  with 
rock  bottom  at  New  Albany  were  evidently  Indian 
camps  of  minor  importance.  They  were  near  large 
lakes  which  then  existed  and  between  them  on  high 
back-bones  or  ridges.  These  ridges  are  now  in  my 
farm  and  hundreds  of  arrow-heads,  tomahawks, 
pestle  and  mortar  rocks  and  other  relics  have  been 
found.  My  son,  now  sixteen,  has  several  hundred 
arrow  and  spear-heads  of  all  sizes.  At  these  minor 
camps  the  Indians  evidently  camped,  fished  and 
hunted  in  good  weather  when  the  river  was  low.” 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


99 


Attention  is  called  to  the  words  in  italics  stating  that 
the  old  Indian  camps  ‘‘were  near  large  lakes  which  then 
existed  and  between  them  on  high  back-bones  or  ridges.” 
These  lakes,  or  pondy  places  were  scattered  over  the  hill 
country  of  the  Chickasaws,  as  all  observant  persons  know 
to  have  been  the  case,  before  the  country  was  deforested. 

In  a subsequent  letter  Judge  Crum  says: 

“The  channel  of  the  old  Tallahatchie  River 
adjacent  to  the  point  in  the  river  where  the  rock- 
bottom  ford  anciently  existed,  which  is  about 
of  a mile  southwest  from  the  court  house  at  New 
Albany,  was  (until  as  late  as  1898,  at  which  time  I 
purchased  the  land),  very  deep,  with  the  banks  of 
the  river  on  the  east  side  very  high  and  perpendic- 
ular. In  fact  I live  now  on  this  high  point  that 
projects  into  where  the  old  channel  was  then. 

The  topography  then  agreed  very  well  with  the 
description  which  the  Spaniard,  Garcilaso  de  la 
Vega  gave  of  it  in  his  diary,  considering  the  time 
that  has  elapsed. 

As  attorney  for  the  Tallahatchie  District  I had 
a canal  dug  down  the  bottom  for  a distance  of  30 
miles.  The  width  of  the  canal  is  30  feet  or  more 
at  its  top  end  to  60  feet  or  more  at  its  mouth  at  the 
west  line  of  Union  County.  There  is  no  place  in 
the  river  where  there  was  a solid  rock  bottom,  ex- 
cept at  New  Albany,  and  although  the  canal  is  18 
feet  deep  in  places,  we  encountered  no  rock  in  dig- 
ging it.” 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  the  main  topographical 
features  of  the  country  from  Pontotoc  on  to  the  Chick- 
asaw Bluffs  are  quite  similar ; and  these  features  should 
be  borne  in  mind  when  we  read  the  various  narratives. 


100 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  FOUR  DE  SOTO  NARRATIVES  QUOTED  AND 
COMPARED. 

We  come  now  to  consider  the  four  separate  narra- 
tives of  the  De  Soto  Expedition.  Dr.  Rowland,  follow- 
ing in  the  footsteps  of  Prof.  Lewis,  adopts  the  three 
narratives  of  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas,  Rodrigo  Ranjel 
and  Hernandez  de  Biedma,  as  edited  by  Edward  Gay- 
lord Bourne  in  the  “Trail  Makers.”  They  reject  alto- 
gether the  narrative  of  Garcilaso  de  la  Vega. 

For  the  present  I will  follow  their  selection,  because 
these  three  narratives  so  selected  by  them,  when  exam- 
ined, especially  in  the  light  of  the  topography  and  geol- 
ogy of  the  country  and  the  condition  surrounding  the 
expedition,  demonstrate  that  the  Mississippi  was  discov- 
ered at  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs. 

Later  I will  show  that  Garcilaso’s  is  entirely  worthy 
of  credit,  and  if  this  is  so,  then  they  admit  they  are  out 
of  court. 

I will  now  briefly  refer  to  the  time  each  of  the  four 
narratives  appeared  in  print  following  exactly  the  order 
observed  by  Bourne  as  set  forth  in  his  preface. 

First : “The  Gentleman  of  Elvas.” 

This  narrative  purports  to  have  been  written  by  a 
Portugese  gentleman  (not  a Spaniard),  and  was  first 
published  at  Evora,  Portugal,  in  1557.  The  narrative 
also  purports  to  have  been  written  by  one  who  accom- 
panied De  Soto,  but  the  writer  did  not  reveal  his  name, 
and  it  is  not  known  to  this  day.  Some  who  reject  Gar- 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


101 


cilaso,  also  reject  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas,  but  not  so 
Bourne  and  his  followers,  who  put  great  reliance  thereon. 

Second : Bourne  admits  that  “next  in  order  of 
publication  and  equal  in  fame  comes”  Garcilaso,  which 
was  first  published  in  Lisbon  in  1605,  or  only  62  years 
after  the  death  of  De  Soto,  and  again  re-published  in 
Madrid  in  1722.  It  is  admitted  that  Garcilaso  was  of 
noble  birth,  and  that  he  was  a historian  of  distinction 
aside  from  his  De  Soto  narrative. 

His  narrative  is  rejected  by  some  after  the  lapse  of 
some  hundreds  of  years,  because  he  states  that  he  was 
not  a member  of  the  expedition,  but  got  his  information 
from  a nobleman,  who  did  accompany  the  expedition  and 
who,  for  a lifetime,  had  been  Garcilaso’s  bosom  friend 
and  constantly  related  the  incidents  of  the  expedition, 
and  these  were  supplemented  by  notes  taken  down  by 
two  privates  in  the  expedition ; so  that  the  narrative  is 
based  on  the  testimony  of  three  witnesses. 

Third : The  narrative  of  Hernandez  de  Biedma,  the 
King’s  factor,  was  drawn  up  in  1544,  but  not  published 
until  1841,  and  then  in  French,  by  the  French  scholar, 
Ternaux-Campons,  the  first  English  edition  appearing  in 
1850.  On  page  XV,  Bourne  commends  Biedma’s  narra- 
tive as  an  official  account,  though  giving  few  details, 
“except  as  to  directions  and  distances” ; or  in  other  words 
he  is  said  to  be  accurate  in  giving  details  “as  to  direc- 
tions and  distances,”  which  is  an  important  admission,  as 
shown  further  on. 


102 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Fourth : Rodrigo  Ranjel  was  the  private  secretary 
of  De  Soto,  and  his  narrative  did  not  come  to  light  until 
1866,  when,  according  to  Bourne,  it  was  revealed  in 
Oviedo’s  Historia  General  Y Natural  de  las  Indias. 
Bourne  says  also  that  he  was  convinced  that  Oviedo’s 
account  had  imbedded  in  it  Rodrigo  Ranjel’s  journal  in 
the  same  way  as  the  journal  of  Columbus  of  his  second 
voyage  was  preserved  by  Las  Casas  in  his  Historia  de  las 
Indias. 

It  can  readily  be  seen  that  the  Ranjel  account  may 
have  suffered  important  changes  through  the  channels  it 
has  reached  us ; nevertheless  by  the  authors  mentioned  it 
is  given  first  rank  for  accuracy,  followed  next  by  the 
Gentleman  of  Elvas,  then  by  Biedma,  while  they  reject 
altogether  Garcilaso. 

We  now  meet  them  on  their  chosen  ground. 

When  doing  this,  however,  I will  quote  the  text  of 
these  three  narratives,  word  for  word,  and  I will  de- 
cline to  accept  the  versions  thereof  by  Prof.  Lewis  and 
followed  by  Dr.  Rowland,  for  important  words  are  not 
only  left  out,  but  interpolations  are  made  without  the 
least  regard  to  the  originals.  These  quotations  will  begin 
with  the  departure  of  De  Soto  from  near  the  seat  of  the 
Chickasaw  Nation,  in  what  is  now  Pontotoc  County,  for 
it  seems  to  be  now  conceded  that  the  expedition  crossed 
Tallahatchie  River  near  New  Albany,  where  there  is  for 
that  country  a very  unusual  geological  formation,  namely 
a solid  rock  bottom  for  the  river,  the  meaning  of  the 
Indian  word  Tallahatchie  being  rock  river. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


103 


The  Text  of  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas — 

“From  some  prisoners  taken,  the  governor  in- 
formed himself  of  the  region  in  advance.  On  the 
25th  day  of  April  (1541)  he  left  Chicaca  and  went 
to  sleep  at  a small  town  called  Alimamu.  Very 
little  maize  was  found ; and  as  it  became  necessary 
to  attempt  thence  to  pass  a desert,  seven  days’  jour- 
ney in  extent,  the  next  day  the  governor  ordered 
that  three  captains,  each  with  cavalry  and  foot, 
should  take  a different  direction,  to  get  provisions 
for  the  way.  Juan  de  Anasco,  the  comptroller,  went 
with  fifteen  horse  and  forty  foot  on  the  course  the 
governor  would  have  to  march,  and  found  a staked 
fort  where  the  Indians  were  awaiting  them.  Many 
were  armed,  walking  upon  it,  with  their  bodies, 
legs  and  arms  painted  and  ochred,  red,  black, 
white,  yellow  and  vermilion  in  stripes,  so  that  they 
appeared  to  have  on  stockings  and  doublet.  Some 
wore  feathers,  and  others  horns  on  the  head,  the 
face  blackened,  and  the  eyes  encircled  with  vermil- 
ion, to  heighten  their  fierce  aspect.  So  soon  as  they 
saw  the  Christians  draw  nigh  they  beat  drums,  and, 
with  loud  yells,  in  great  fury  came  forth  to  meet 
them.  As  to  Juan  de  Anasco  and  others  it  appeared 
wTell  to  avoid  them,  and  to  inform  the  governor, 
they  retired,  over  an  even  ground  in  sight,  the  dis- 
tance of  a cross-bow  shot  from  the  enclosure,  the 
footmen,  the  cross-bow  men  and  targeteers  putting 
themselves  before  those  on  horseback,  that  the 
beasts  might  not  be  wounded  by  the  Indians,  who 
came  forth  by  sevens  and  eights  to  discharge  their 
bows  at  them  and  retire.  In  sight  of  the  Christians 
they  made  a fire,  and,  taking  an  Indian  by  the  head 
and  feet,  pretended  to  give  him  many  blows  on  the 
head  and  cast  him  into  the  flames,  signifying  in  this 
way  what  they  would  do  with  the  Christians. 

A message  being  sent  with  three  of  the  cavalry 
to  the  governor,  informing  him  of  this,  he  came  di- 
rectly. It  was  his  opinion  that  they  should  be 


104 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


driven  from  the  place.  He  said  that  if  this  was  not 
done  they  would  be  emboldened  to  make  an  attack 
at  some  other  time,  when  they  might  do  him  more 
harm ; those  on  horseback  were  commanded  to  dis- 
mount, and,  being  set  in  four  squadrons,  at  the 
signal  charged  the  Indians.  They  resisted  until  the 
Christians  came  up  to  the  stakes ; then,  seeing  they 
could  not  defend  themselves,  they  fled  through  that 
part  near  which  passed  a stream,  sending  back  some 
arrows  from  the  other  bank;  and  became,  at  the 
moment,  no  place  was  found  where  the  horses  might 
ford,  they  had  time  to  make  their  escape.  Three 
Indians  were  killed  and  many  Christians  zvounded, 
of  whom , after  a few  days,  fifteen  died  on  the 
march.  Every  one  thought  the  governor  com- 
mitted a great  fault  in  not  sending  to  examine  the 
state  of  the  ground  on  the  opposite  shore,  and  dis- 
cover the  crossing-place  before  making  the  attack; 
because,  with  the  hope  the  Indians  had  of  escaping 
unseen  in  that  direction,  they  fought  until  they  were 
broken ; and  it  was  the  cause  of  their  holding  out  so 
long  to  assail  the  Christians,  as  they  could,  with 
safety  to  themselves. 


How  the  Governor  Went  from  Quizquiz,  and  Thence  to  the 
River  Grande — 


Three  days  having  gone  by  since  some  maize 
had  been  sought  after,  and  but  little  found  in  com- 
parison with  the  great  want  there  was  of  it,  the 
governor  became  obliged  to  move  at  once,  notwith- 
standing the  wounded  had  need  of  repose,  to  where 
there  should  be  abundance.  He  accordingly  set  out 
for  Quizquiz,  and  marched  seven  days  through  a 
wilderness , hawing  many  pondy  places,  zmth  thick 
forests , fordable,  however,  on  horseback,  all  to  some 
basins  or  lakes  that  were  swum.  He  arrived  at  a 
town  of  Quizquiz  without  being  descried,  and  seized 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


105 


all  the  people  before  they  could  come  out  of  their 
homes.  Among  them  was  the  mother  of  the 
Cacique;  and  the  governor  sent  word  to  him,  by 
one  of  the  captives,  to  come  and  receive  her,  with 
the  rest  he  had  taken.  The  answer  he  returned  was, 
that  if  his  lordship  would  order  them  to  be  loosed 
and  sent,  he  would  come  to  visit  and  do  him  serv- 
ice. 

The  governor,  since  his  men  arrived  weary, 
and  likewise  weak,  for  want  of  maize,  and  the  horses 
were  also  lean,  determined  to  yield  to  the  require- 
ment and  try  to  have  peace;  so  the  mother  and  the 
rest  were  ordered  to  be  set  free,  and  with  words 
of  kindness  were  dismissed.  The  next  day,  while 
he  was  hoping  to  see  the  chief,  many  Indians  came, 
with  bows  and  arrows,  to  set  upon  the  Christians, 
when  he  commanded  that  all  the  armed  horsemen 
should  be  mounted  and  in  readiness.  Finding  them 
prepared,  the  Indians  stopped  at  the  distance  of  a 
crossbow  shot  from  where  the  governor  was,  near 
a river  bank,  where,  after  remaining  quietly  half 
an  hour,  six  chiefs  arrived  at  the  camp,  stating  that 
they  had  come  to  find  out  what  people  it  might  be ; 
for  they  had  knowledge  from  their  ancestors  that 
they  were  to  be  subdued  by  a white  race ; they  conse- 
quently desired  to  return  to  the  Cacique,  to  tell 
him  that  he  should  come  presently  to  obey  and  serve 
the  governor.  After  presenting  six  or  seven  skins 
and  shawls  brought  with  him,  they  took  their  leave, 
and  returned  with  the  others  who  were  waiting 
for  them  by  the  shore.  The  Cacique  came  not,  nor 
sent  another  message. 

There  was  little  maize  in  the  place,  and  the 
goz'ernor  moved  to  another  town,  half  a league 
from  the  great  river,  here  it  was  found  in  suffi- 
ciency. He  went  to  look  at  the  river,  and  saw  that 
near  it  there  was  much  timber  of  which  piraguas 
might  be  made,  and  a good  situation  in  which  the 
camp  might  be  placed.  He  directly  moved,  built 


106 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


houses,  and  settled  on  a plain  a crossbow  shot  from 
the  water,  bringing  together  there  all  the  maize  of 
the  towns  behind,  that  at  once  they  might  go  to 
work  and  cut  down  trees  for  sawing  out  planks  to 
build  barges.  The  Indians  soon  came  from  up  the 
stream,  jumped  on  shore,  and  told  the  governor  they 
were  the  vassals  of  a great  lord,  named  Aquixo, 
who  was  the  suzerain  of  many  towns  and  people 
on  the  other  shore ; and  they  made  known  from 
him,  that  he  would  come  the  day  after,  with  all  his 
people,  to  hear  what  his  lordship  would  command 
him.” 

The  Text  of  Biedma — 

“We  remained  here  perhaps  two  months,  get- 
ting ready  what  were  necessary  of  saddles,  lances 
and  targets,  and  then  left,  taking  the  direction  to 
the  northwest,  toiuard  a province  called  Alibamo. 

At  this  time  befell  us  what  is  said  never  to  have 
occurred  to  the  Indians.  In  the  highway  over 
which  we  had  to  pass,  without  there  being  either 
women  to  protect  or  provisions  to  secure,  and  only 
to  try  our  valour  with  theirs,  the  Indians  put  up 
a very  strong  stockade  directly  across  the  road, 
about  three  hundred  of  them  standing  behind  it, 
resolute  to  die  rather  than  give  back.  So  soon  as 
they  observed  our  approach,  some  came  out  to  shoot 
their  arrows,  threatening  that  not  one  of  us  should 
remain  alive.  When  we  had  surveyed  their  work, 
thus  defended  by  men,  we  supposed  they  guarded 
something — provisions  perhaps — of  which  we 
stood  greatly  in  need,  for  we  had  calculated  to  cross 
a desert  of  twelve  days’  journey  in  its  extent,  where 
we  could  have  nothing  to  eat  but  what  we  carried. 
We  alighted,  some  forty  or  fifty  men,  and  put  our- 
selves on  two  sides,  arranging  that  at  the  sound 
of  the  trumpet  we  should  all  enter  the  barricade 
at  one  time.  We  did  accordingly,  carrying  it,  al- 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


107 


though  at  some  cost,  losing  on  our  side  seven  or 
eight  men,  and  having  twenty-five  or  twenty-six 
more  wounded.  We  killed  some  Indians,  and  took 
others,  from  whom  we  learned  that  they  had  done 
this  to  measure  themselves  with  us,  and  nothing 
else.  We  looked  about  for  food,  although  at  great 
hazard,  that  we  might  begin  our  journey  in  the 
wilderness. 

We  traveled  eight  days  with  great  care,  in  ten- 
derness of  the  wounded  and  the  sick  we  carried. 
One  mid-day  we  came  upon  a town  called  Quiz  quiz, 
and  so  suddenly  to  the  inhabitants,  that  they  were 
without  any  notice  of  us,  the  men  being  away  at 
work  in  the  maize  fields.  We  took  more  than  three 
hundred  women,  and  the  few  skins  and  shawls  they 
had  in  their  houses.  There  we  first  found  a little 
walnut  of  the  country,  which  is  much  better  than 
that  here  in  Spain.  The  town  was  near  the  hanks 
of  the  River  Espiritu  Santo.  They  had  told  us 
that  it  was,  with  many  towns  about  there,  tribu- 
tary to  a lord  of  Pacaha,  famed  throughout  the 
land.  When  the  men  heard  that  we  had  taken  their 
women,  they  came  to  us  peacefully,  requesting  the 
governor  to  restore  them.  He  did  so,  and  asked 
them  for  canoes  in  which  to  pass  that  great  river. 
These  they  promised,  but  never  gave;  on  the  con- 
trary, they  collected  to  give  us  battle,  coming  in 
sight  of  the  town  where  we  were;  but  in  the  end 
not  venturing  to  make  an  attack,  they  turned  and 
retired. 

We  left  that  place  and  went  to  encamp  by  the 
riverside,  to  put  ourselves  in  order  for  crossing.  On 
the  other  shore  we  saw  numbers  of  people  collected 
to  oppose  our  landing,  who  had  many  canoes.  We 
set  about  building  four  large  piriguas,  each  capa- 
ble of  taking  sixty  or  seventy  men  and  five  or  six 
horses.  We  were  engaged  in  the  work  twenty- 
seven  or  twenty-eight  days.” 


108 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


The  Text  of  Ranjel — 


‘'Tuesday,  April  26,  in  the  year  aforesaid,  1541, 
the  governor,  Hernando  de  Soto,  set  out  from  the 
plain  of  Chicaca,  and  arrived  at  Limamu  for  the 
night;  and  there  they  searched  for  corn,  because 
the  Indians  had  hidden  it,  and  they  had  to  pass  over 
a desert.  And  Thursday  they  came  to  another  plain 
where  the  Indians  had  taken  the  position,  having 
made  a very  strong  barricade,  and  within  it  there 
were  many  Indian  braves,  painted  red  and  deco- 
rated with  other  colours  which  appeared  very  fine 
(or  rather,  very  bad,  at  least  it  meant  harm  to  the 
Christians).  And  they  entered  the  barricade  by 
force,  and  with  some  loss  by  death  and  wounds  on 
the  part  of  the  commander  and  his  army,  and  with 
a loss  greater  beyond  comparison  on  the  part  of 
the  conquered ; and  it  would  have  been  still  more 
if  the  Indians  had  not  taken  flight. 

Saturday,  the  last  day  of  April,  the  army  set 
out  from  the  place  of  the  barricade  and  marched 
nine  days  through  a deserted  country  and  by  a 
rough  way,  mountainous  and  swampy,  until  May 
8th,  when  they  came  to  the  first  village  of  Quiz  quiz, 
which  they  took  by  assault  and  captured  much  peo- 
ple and  clothes ; but  the  governor  promptly  restored 
them  liberty  and  had  everything  restored  to  them 
for  fear  of  war,  although  that  was  not  enough  to 
make  friends  of  these  Indians.  A league  beyond 
this  village  they  came  upon  another  with  abundance 
of  corn,  and  soon  again  after  another  league,  upon 
another  likewise  amply  provisioned.  There  they 
saw  the  great  river.  Saturday,  May  21,  the  force 
went  along  to  a plain  between  the  river  and  a small 
village,  and  set  up  quarters  and  began  to  build 
four  barges  to  cross  over  to  the  other  side.  Many 
of  these  conquerors  said  this  river  was  larger  than 
the  Danube.” 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


109 


It  may  be  thought  that  my  quotations  are  entirely 
too  lengthy  for  the  few  sentences  of  pertinent  matter, 
as  compared  to  that  which  is  not  pertinent.  My  excuse  is, 
first,  I wish  the  reader  to  see  the  entire  context,  and 
thus  at  the  same  time  do  entire  justice,  and  so  that  no 
one  may  say  anything  was  omitted.  It  is  almost  unnec- 
essary to  add  that  all  the  italics  in  this  article  are  my 
own,  which  I use  in  order  to  direct  the  attention  of  the 
reader  to  such  parts  as  I deem  pertinent  to  the  points 
at  issue. 


Opinion  of  Professor  Lewis  Criticised — 

Dr.  Rowland  states  that  Theodore  Hayes  Lewis  is 
a learned  antiquarian,  archeologist  and  historian,  and 
that  no  historian  has  thought  it  wise  to  question  his  con- 
clusions; but  we  have  seen  that  Judge  Young,  a real 
historian,  has  sharply  questioned  the  conclusions  of  Prof. 
Lewis.  Moreover,  though  I am  not  an  historian,  or  anti- 
quarian or  archeologist,  still  I am  here  and  now  to 
pointedly  question  the  conclusions  of  Prof.  Lewis,  believ- 
ing that  no  one,  whatever  may  be  his  acquirements,  has 
a right  to  preempt  the  discussion  or  an  exclusive  right 
to  express  an  opinion  on  a matter  so  plain  that  any  man 
of  ordinary  understanding  can  easily  form  an  intelligent 
opinion.  In  point  of  fact,  I believe,  that  the  phrase, 
“much  learning  doth  make  thee  mad,”  which  was  so 
misapplied  near  two  thousand  years  ago,  to  one  of  the 
greatest  men  the  world  ever  heard,  in  the  High  Court  of 
Appeals  in  a kingly  palace,  can  be  well  applied  to  the 
two  learned  authors,  in  relation  to  this  discussion. 


110 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Let  us  see — 

On  page  146,  Centenary  Series,  No.  II,  Dr.  Rowland 
quotes  Prof.  Lewis  as  stating  the  route  of  De  Soto,  after 
crossing  the  Tallahatchie,  in  these  words : 

“On  Saturday,  April  30,  the  army  left  this  en- 
closed place,  turning  to  the  westward.” 

The  three  narratives  will  be  searched  in  vain  for 
any  statement  that  the  expedition  turned  at  all,  and  least 
of  all,  westward.  The  statement  is  a complete  interpola- 
tion. 

This  is  not  by  any  means  all,  for  it  will  be  recalled 
that  their  favorite  author.  Bourne,  commends  Biedma’s 
short  narrative  for  accuracy  “as  to  directions  and  dis- 
tances.” Now  Biedma’s  narrative  is  the  only  one  which 
undertakes  to  give  the  direction  that  De  Soto  took  after 
leaving  the  Chickasaw  nation ; and  as  the  two  other  nar- 
ratives are  silent  on  this  point,  certainly  when  the  third 
one,  commended  for  accuracy  in  this  particular,  gives 
the  direction  it  must  be  accepted  as  true.  What  does 
Biedma  say? 

“We  remained  here  two  months,  getting  ready 
what  was  necessary  of  saddles,  lances  and  targets 
and  then  left,  taking  the  direction  to  the  northwest, 
towards  a province  called  Alibamo.” 

Why  was  this  direction,  which  so  plainly  and  un- 
mistakably pointed  to  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  omitted; 
and  why  were  the  words  “turning  to  the  westward”  in- 
terpolated, and  which  so  plainly  pointed  to  Tunica 
County? 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


111 


Having  thus  airily  and  neatly  constructed  a paper- 
turning for  the  expedition  in  a paper  direction  westward, 
so  as  to  reach  “somewhere”  in  dear  old  Tunica,  the  next 
thought  of  the  guide,  philosopher  and  friend  of  Dr. 
Rowland  seems  to  have  been  to  neatly  construct  a com- 
panion paper-route  for  the  De  Soto  expedition,  especially 
adapted  to  the  canebrakes,  lakes  and  fastnesses  of  the 
Mississippi  delta. 

However,  acquitting  the  learned  author  of  any  in- 
tentional purpose  to  warp  the  plain  story  of  the  narra- 
tives, still,  when  examined,  his  account  exhibits  an  almost 
perfect  adaptation  of  a means  to  an  end. 

Immediately  following  the  sentence  above  quoted 
and  criticised,  Prof.  Lewis  says : 

“ ‘According  to  Elvas,  the  country  they  were 
now  passing  through  was  a wilderness  of  thick 
forests,  having  many  marshy  places  that  were  ford- 
able, and  some  basins  and  lakes  (sluggish  streams) 
that  were  not.’  In  another  place  he  says:  ‘The 
land  is  low,  abounding  in  lakes.’  Ranjel  says  they 
passed  over  bad  roads  leading  through  woods  and 
swamps.” 

It  would  be  difficult  to  more  incorrectly  misstate 
what  was  really  said  by  the  two  narrators  than  is  found 
in  the  above  quotation  from  Prof.  Lewis.  Elvas  will  be 
searched  in  vain  for  the  sentence  ascribed  to  him  in  quo- 
tation marks,  “the  land  was  low,  abounding  in  lakes.” 
Where,  then,  did  this  sentence  come  from? 

Here  is  what  Elvas  said : 

“He  accordingly  set  out  for  Quizquiz,  and 
marched  seven  days  through  a wilderness,  having 


112 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


many  pondy  places,  with  thick  forests,  fordable 
however,  on  horseback,  all  to  some  basins  or  lakes 
that  were  swum.” 

The  sentence  is  involved  and  not  well  worded,  al- 
though Elvas  is  especially  acclaimed  to  be  the  best  scholar 
among  the  narrators ; still  just  how  the  Professor  is 
able  to  interpret  the  above  language  to  mean  that  there 
were  some  basins  and  lakes  that  were  not  fordable,  when 
the  narrator  expressly  states  the  reverse,  I am  unable  to 
see. 

Moreover,  it  will  be  noted  that  the  Professor  uses 
the  conjunctive  “and”  between  basins  and  lakes;  where- 
as Elvas  uses  the  disjunctive  “or”  between  them.  As 
explained  hereinbefore,  in  treating  of  the  topographical 
features  of  the  small  plateaus  in  the  country  southeast 
of  the  fourth  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  they  abounded  with 
marshy  places,  basins  or  lakes.  Elvas  wrote  basins 
or  lakes;  or  as  he  had  just  said  “pondy  places,”  evi- 
dently meaning  that  these  places  scarcely  arose  to  the 
proportions  of  what  we  understand  to  be  a lake.  The 
Professor  not  only  eliminates  the  qualified  language  of 
Elvas,  but  makes  him  convey  the  idea  that  the  lakes 
were  so  large  that  they  were  not  fordable,  thus  evi- 
dently pointing  to  the  Mississippi  swamps. 

But  if  the  Professor  erroneously  and  improperly 
stated  what  Elvas  said,  then  he  is  worse  than  erroneous 
in  quoting  from  Ranjel  who,  it  will  be  remembered,  is 
declared  to  be  the  most  accurate  of  all  the  narrators. 

The  Professor  quotes  Ranjel  thus : 

“Ranjel  says  they  passed  over  bad  roads  lead- 
ing through  woods  and  swamps.” 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


113 


Ranjel  said  no  such  thing.  What  he  recorded  is  in 
these  words : 

“Saturday  the  last  of  April,  the  army  set  out 
from  the  place  of  barricade  and  marched  nine  days 
through  a deserted  country  and  by  a rough  way, 
mountainous  and  swampy,”  etc. 

I ask  by  what  principle  of  interpretation  or  fair- 
ness,  did  the  Professor  omit  the  word  mountainous, 
which  Ranjel  used  and  which  with  marked  precision  de- 
scribed the  Tippah  Highlands,  which  reached  down  into 
Marshall  County  and  over  which  the  Chickasaw  trail 
passed?  He  knew  there  was  no  mountainous  country 
leading  from  where  New  Albany  now  is  to  the  imag- 
inary point  in  Tunica  County  where  he  was  laboring  to 
land  De  Soto. 

Indeed  after  eliminating  the  word  mountainous 
from  Ranjel’s  account  he  used  the  garbled  statement  to 
point  his  argument  that  the  discovery  was  made  in  the 
Mississippi  swamps ; for  he  immediately  adds : “This 
part  of  the  route  lay  wholly  within  the  State  of  Missis- 
sippi for,  had  it  been  toward  Memphis,  they  would  have 
passed  through  a hilly  region  instead  of  one  of  swamps.” 
Yes,  indeed,  the  country  through  which  De  Soto  really 
did  pass  was  in  point  of  fact  not  only  hilly,  but  to  use 
the  exact  word  of  Ranjel  “mountainous,”  at  least  in  ap- 
pearance; and  to  use  his  other  word  there  were  parts  of 
it  “swampy.”  Paradoxical  as  it  may  seem  at  first  blush, 
nevertheless  Ranjel  perfectly  describes  the  two  main  fea- 
tures of  the  country  traversed  by  the  Chickasaw  trail, 
when  he  used  the  words  “swampy  and  mountainous.” 


114 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


That  is  to  say,  the  bottoms  of  Nonconnah,  Cold  water, 
Tippah,  and  numerous  other  smaller  streams  which  were 
crossed  were  filled  with  swamps,  cypress  brakes,  pondy 
places,  lagoons,  morasses  and  almost  impenetrable  thick' 
ets  and  forests,  so  as  to  make  them  veritable  wilder' 
nesses;  while  the  abrupt  high  hills  of  the  Tippah  high- 
lands, reaching  down  into  Marshall  county,  gave  that 
part  of  the  country  a mountainous  aspect,  and  this  top- 
ographical feature  of  the  country  remains  to  this  day. 
And  still  Dr.  Rowland  is  surprised  that  any  one  should 
have  the  temerity  to  question  the  conclusions  of  Prof, 
Lewis ! 


It  is  amusing  to  read  the  sentence  of  the  professor 
locating  the  point  where  the  great  river  was  discovered, 
the  ipse  dixit  characteristic,  being  its  main  feature.  He 
says : “The  crossing  was  made  either  at  Council  Bend 
or  Walnut  Bend,  in  Tunica  County,  in  a straight  line 
some  25  to  38  miles  below  Memphis.”  That  this  is  a 
guess  pure  and  simple,  without  one  line  of  support  in  any 
narrative  is  perfectly  apparent.  There  are  dozens  of 
bends  on  the  river  similar  to  these,  and  there  is  no 
pretense  of  a physical  feature  at  either  point  to  identify 
it  as  the  landing  place. 

There  is  likewise  a significant  silence  on  the  part 
of  Prof.  Lewis,  with  respect  to  the  several  Indian  vil- 
lages and  the  fields  of  growing  maize,  not  to  mention 
the  hundreds  and  even  thousands  of  Indians  who  had  a 
permanent  home  at  the  place  where  the  great  river  was 
discovered. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


115 


The  one  thing  that  appears  to  have  burdened  the 
professor’s  thoughts,  was  to  drive  De  Soto  and  his  small 
army  through  the  well  nigh  impenetrable  swamps,  mor- 
asses, cane  brakes,  sloughs  and  lagoons  of  Tallahatchie 
and  Coldwater  river  bottoms,  not  to  mention  that  of  the 
Mississippi,  which  are  worse  than  those  of  the  Yalobusha, 
the  word  “Yalobusha”  in  the  Indian  language  meaning 
tadpole  place.  Apparently,  in  the  opinion  of  the  pro- 
fessor, any  old  place  in  the  Mississippi  swamps,  even  a 
tadpole  place,  was  quite  eligible  for  a permanent  home  for 
the  Indians. 

And  again  the  professor  and  his  friend,  Dr.  Row- 
land, seem  oblivious  to  the  fact  that  it  is  actually  a little 
farther,  on  an  air  line,  from  Pontotoc  in  the  northeast- 
ern part  of  the  state,  to  the  ubiquitous  place  in  Tunica 
county,  where  they  claim  the  river  was  discovered,  than 
it  is  to  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  leading  to  which  were  well 
known  and  well  traveled  Chickasaw  trails,  affording  a 
far  better  road  to  the  river ; whereas  no  one  pretends  that 
there  was  any  trail  of  the  Chickasaws  or  of  any  one  else 
leading  to  Tunica  county. 

And  finally  on  this  feature  of  the  discussion,  can 
the  professor  and  Dr.  Rowland  name  any  river  that 
flows  into  the  Mississippi  in  Tunica  county?  It  is  cer- 
tain no  mention  is  made  of  such  a river  by  them,  and  it 
is  an  undeniable  fact,  resulting  from  purely  natural 
causes,  that  no  river  flows  into  the  Mississippi  river  on 
the  east  side,  after  Nonconnah,  at  the  south  end  of  the 
Chickasaw  Bluffs,  until  the  mouth  of  the  Yazoo  is  reach- 
ed, 300  miles  to  the  south.  In  fact  the  surface  waters 


116 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


of  Tunica  and  even  those  of  De  Soto,  Marshall  and  Ben- 
ton counties,  bordering  on  Tennessee,  flow  into  Coldwater 
river,  which  deflects  southward,  joins  the  Tallahatchie 
after  which  their  combined  waters,  with  those  of  the 
Yalobusha  further  south,  are  known  as  the  Yazoo  river, 
entering  the  Mississippi  near  Vicksburg. 

Another  thing  is  equally  undeniable,  and  that  is  their 
favorite  author,  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas,  plainly  states 
that  while  the  Indians  were  menacing  the  expedition  at 
the  villages  of  Quizquiz,  and  before  the  expedition  pitched 
camp  by  the  Great  river,  De  Soto  drew  up  his  horsemen 
near  a river-bluff  to  confront  the  Indians.  This  river 
formed  then  and  forms  now  an  unmistakable,  and  may 
I not  add  a controlling  feature  of  the  country,  forever 
destroying  the  Tunica  county  theory,  and  stamping  the 
fourth  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  with  Wolf  river  flowing  into 
the  Mississippi  at  its  north  terminus,  and  Nonconnah 
(almost  a little  river),  flowing  into  the  great  river  at  its 
south  terminus,  as  the  place  where  white  men  first  gazed 
upon  the  father  of  waters? 


Did  the  learned  historians  pass  over  this  unmis- 
takable feature  of  the  country  where  the  discovery  was 
made  sub  silentio,  because  they  were  not  conversant  with 
the  topography  of  the  country;  or  because  they  read  El- 
vas so  inattentively  as  to  overlook  this  important  matter? 
I know  not.  Certain  it  is  that  when  further  on  Prof. 
Lewis  undertook  to  disparage  the  claims  of  Memphis, 
he  was  alive  to  physical  features,  for  he  commented  on 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


117 


the  conformation  of  the  plateau  at  the  bluffs,  in  order 
to  make  a point  for  his  argument,  and  in  this  I shall 
show  that  he  was  mistaken. 

It  is  also  a little  amusing  that  after  the  learned  his- 
torian lands  De  Soto  over  in  the  Arkansas  swamps  op- 
posite Tunica  county,  and  started  him  in  a course  north- 
ward and  practically  parallel  with  the  Great  river,  the 
suggestion  is  made  that  possibly  some  earthquake  may 
have  changed  the  topography  of  the  country;  and  still 
Dr.  Rowland,  in  his  last  paper,  appeals  to  the  topography 
of  the  country  as  unchangeable! 

From  this  short  review  I believe  the  impartial  read- 
er will  conclude  that  eltrich  and  eerie  and  strange  must 
be  the  mythical  place  in  Tunica  where,  in  the  imagina- 
tions of  the  learned  historians,  De  Soto  discovered  the 
Mississippi ; and  moreover  that  they  must  appeal  to  the 
miraculous  in  order  to  conjure  up  even  a shadow  of 
support  for  their  favorite  theory.  Indeed,  the  supposed 
place  where  the  discovery  was  made,  is  an  arbitrary  con- 
ception, as  destitute  of  objective  characteristics  as  the 
tropic  of  Capricorn. 

De  Soto’s  Route  to  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs — 

Irrespective  of  any  criticism  of  the  theory  of  Prof. 
Lewis  and  Dr.  Rowland,  let  us  endeavor  new  to  place 
ourselves  near  the  home  of  the  Chickasaw  Nation  in 
April.  1541,  and  with  the  De  Soto  expedition  when  it  was 
about  to  move  forward  in  search  of  the  new  El  Dorado, 
reminding  us  of  the  quest  for  the  fabled  golden  fleece. 
Where  were  they  and  what  roads  lay  before  them? 


118 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


The  Chickasaws  had  chosen  as  their  home  and  the 
seat  of  their  government  the  country  lying  now  in  Pon- 
totoc county,  Mississippi,  as  the  very  best  for  health,  for 
abundance  of  everything  necessary  to  their  sustenance,  as 
well  as  for  beauty,  and  as  being  without  a rival  in  the 
vast  territory  of  which  they  were  the  acknowledged  over- 
lords. 

Their  home  was  on  the  well  known  Pontotoc  ridge, 
which  runs  north  and  south,  the  waters  to  the  east  run- 
ning into  the  Tombigbee,  and  those  on  the  west  of  the 
ridge  running  into  the  Tallahatchie  and  Cold  water  rivers 
and  thence  into  the  Yazoo  and  on  into  the  Mississippi. 
Of  the  home  of  the  Chickasaws  Bancroft  speaks  of  it  as 
a land  “where  the  grass  is  verdant  in  midwinter;  the 
blue-bird  and  the  robin  are  heard  in  February ; the  springs 
of  pure  water  gurgle  up  through  the  white  sands  to 
flow  through  natural  bowers  of  evergreen  holly;  and  if 
the  earth  be  but  carelessly  gashed  to  receive  the  kernel  of 
maize,  the  thick  corn  springs  abundantly  from  the  fertile 
soil.  The  region  is  as  happy  as  any  beneath  the  sun ; 
and  the  love  it  inspired  made  its  occupants,  though  not 
numerous,  yet  the  most  intrepid  warriors  of  the  South." 

Evidently  the  Chickasaws  exercised  that  sagacity 
for  which  they  were  noted,  in  the  selection  of  their  home; 
and  being  great  travelers  with  a large  territory  to  guard 
and  defend  against  all  intruders,  they  had  well  defined 
trails  leading  to  all  important  points,  and  especially  to  the 
fourth  Chickasaw  Bluff,  which  was  their  entrepot  on 
the  great  river,  for  they  were  at  home  upon  its  bosom, 
Adair  saying  that  they  appeared  almost  amphibious. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


119 


The  trails  of  the  Chickasaws  leading  in  various  di- 
rections were  perfectly  well  known.  De  Soto  had  been 
wandering  amid  the  wilds  of  the  southern  wilderness 
since  July  15,  1539;  besides  he  had  wandered  in  the 
tropical  forests  of  South  and  Central  America,  and 
probably  no  man  then  living  knew  as  much  as  he  did 
about  the  difficulties  of  such  traveling,  or  better  how  to 
choose  the  best  way.  It  was  scarcely  necessary  for  the 
Gentleman  of  Elvas  to  inform  us  that  “From  some  pris- 
oners taken,  the  Governor  informed  himself  of  the  re- 
gion in  advance.”  We  know  he  diligently  sought  in- 
formation from  every  source,  for  this  was  necessary  for 
self-preservation,  the  first  law  of  nature. 

That  while  he  was  for  months  living  with  the  Chick- 
asaws on  the  most  friendly  terms,  he  learned  from  them 
of  the  great  river  which,  with  its  tributary,  the  Ohio, 
formed  their  western  boundary  and  their  highway  for  a 
thousand  miles,  no  one  can  doubt.  For  seventy-five  years 
Cushman  lived  among  the  Choctaws  and  Chickasaws, 
having  been  raised  in  their  nations,  their  language  being 
his  language,  and  he  says  they  “named  it  (the  Missis- 
sippi) ‘Misha  Sipokni’  (beyond  age,  whose  source  and 
terminus  are  unknown).”  They  knew  all  about  the  sit- 
uation of  this  great  river  with  respect  to  their  country 
and  every  foot  of  their  vast  domains,  and  had  highways 
suitable  to  their  wants  to  all  parts  of  it.  De  Soto  neces- 
sarily learned  the  lay  of  the  country  before  him  and  of 
the  Indian  trails  which  were  unmistakably  marked  out 
on  the  face  of  the  earth.  The  Chickasaw  long  trail  for 
winter  as  well  as  for  summer,  on  top  of  ridges  going 


120 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


almost  directly  north  as  far  as  where  Bolivar,  Tennessee, 
now  is,  then  turning  west  and  on  to  the  Chickasaw 
Bluffs,  was  much  out  of  the  way ; and  moreover  De 
Soto  was  moving  the  last  of  April,  when  presumably  the 
short  cut  route  approximately  by  way  of  where  Holly 
Springs  now  is,  and  onward  northwestwardly  along  where 
the  Pigeon  Roost  road  now  runs,  was  comparatively 
dry,  and  he  had  this  road  or  rather  Indian  trail  over 
which  to  travel. 

The  long  trail  appears  on  Lusher’s  Map  of  1835,  as 
well  as  the  short  cut  trail.  This  article  was  mostly  writ- 
ten before  I knew  there  was  such  a map,  which  I will  ex- 
plain further  on. 

There  is  also  marked  on  Lusher’s  Map  of  1835,  an 
intermediate  trail,  running  with  the  long  trail  a short 
distance  north  from  where  New  Albany  now  is;  thence 
diverging  westward  where  it  crosses  the  headwaters  of 
the  Tallahatchie  and  Coldwater  rivers  higher  up  than 
the  short  cut  trail,  and  still  bearing  northwestward  fol- 
lows the  top  of  the  ridge  dividing  the  waters  of  Wolf 
river  from  those  of  Nonconnah  creek,  the  result  being 
that  it  crosses  neither  Wolf  or  Nonconnah,  and  does 
not  pass  over  as  large  streams  as  the  short  cut.  The 
disadvantages  of  this  route  consist  in  the  fact  that  it  is 
longer  than  the  short  cut,  and  being  higher  up  towards  the 
Tippah  Highlands,  it  is  more  “mountainous.”  I went 
over  this  route  some  years  ago  and  again  in  October, 
1917,  going  from  Memphis  out  Poplar  Street  Boulevard, 
by  Collierville,  there  turning  southward  into  Mississippi, 
and  some  8 to  10  miles  from  Collierville  we  crossed  a 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


121 


very  low  flat  expanse,  the  soil  being  evidently  retentive 
of  water  and  while  in  timber  wet  and  swampy,  and 
partly  so  even  to  this  day,  and  of  a pondy  character. 
While  for  the  most  part  the  road  is  on  high  ground,  still 
we  passed  over  several  streams,  including  Chewalla  and 
Tippah  before  reaching  Potts  Camp,  beyond  Holly 
Springs.  The  windings  of  the  road  and  its  characteristics 
unmistakably  stamps  it  as  of  Indian  origin. 

There  is  a bare  possibility  that  De  Soto  traveled  this 
trail  rather  than  the  short  cut,  but  I do  not  think  that 
probable. 

Lusher’s  map  also  shows  what  T have  denominated 
the  short  cut  route  or  trail,  leading  from  Memphis  along 
approximately  what  is  now  the  Pigeon  Roost  road  over 
which,  in  my  opinion,  De  Soto  passed;  but  it  is  due  to 
say  that  this  trail  does  not  appear  to  cross  Tallahatchie 
at  New  Albany,  but  further  down  and  quite  near  where 
Tippah  flows  into  Tallahatchie,  running  thence  south- 
wardly to  one  of  the  very  few  places  marked  on  the  map, 
Olacopotoo,  which  appears  to  be  the  modern  Toccopola, 
a village  of  some  233  inhabitants  in  Pontotoc  County. 

Here  the  trail  forks ; one  fork  runs  almost  due  east, 
only  12  miles  on  section  lines,  to  Pontotoc,  which,  of 
course,  is  marked  on  the  map ; while  the  other  fork  runs 
much  further  southward.  I am  frank  to  say  that  I do 
not  believe  that  De  Soto  passed  over  this  southern  part 
of  the  short  cut  trail,  and  my  opinion  is  that  he  followed 
the  main  trail  northwestward,  crossing  Tallahatchie 
where  New  Albany  now  is,  on  the  rock  bottom  of  the 
river.  This  is  the  conclusion  also  of  Prof.  Lewis. 


122 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


My  opinion  is  that  not  far  northward  of  New  Al- 
bany, there  was  a trail  connecting  the  main  trail  with  the 
short  cut  trail,  precisely  as  the  intermediate  trail  is 
shown  on  the  map  to  diverge  westward  from  the  main 
trail,  only  about  one  mile  northward  from  New  Albany; 
or  it  may  be  that  the  divergence  was  from  the  intermedi- 
ate trail  to  the  short  cut,  thus  making  a saving  of  dis- 
tance of  some  20  to  30  computed  miles  and  crossing 
many  less  high  hills.  This  view  is  precisely  in  accord 
with  the  statement  of  Judge  Crum,  as  to  the  route  the 
short  cut  took  from  New  Albany  on  to  Holly  Springs, 
and  thence  on  to  where  Memphis  now  is,  as  quoted 
hereinbefore. 

While  Holly  Springs  is  not  on  Lusher’s  map,  still 
it  does  show  the  short-cut  trail  as  crossing  the  head 
waters  of  Coldwater  River,  Byhalia,  Red  Banks  and 
Pigeon  Roost  Creeks,  and  these  streams  are  crossed  to- 
day by  the  Pigeon  Roost  road. 

It  is  due  to  say,  however,  that  according  to  my  reck- 
oning the  trail  did  not  pass  the  spot  where  Holly  Springs 
is  now  located,  but  passed  some  six  miles  westward.  I 
feel  quite  sure  that  Dr.  Lowe  is  entirely  correct  in  saying 
that  the  high  land  whereon  Holly  Springs  is  located 
stands  off  to  itself,  and  is  entirely  disconnected  with  the 
Tippah  highlands,  though  some  modern  maps  show 
otherwise.  Lusher’s  map  corroborates  this  statement  of 
Dr.  Lowe,  in  that  it  shows  no  streams  passing  over  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  Holly  Springs,  but  does  show 
streams  radiating  in  various  directions  from  that  vicin- 
ity; from  which  I infer  that  the  uplift  or  spur  whereon 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


123 


the  little  city  is  located,  furnishes,  at  least  in  part,  the 
origin  of  adjacent  creeks. 

It  is  well  here  to  note  that  the  Indian  trails  or  traces 
on  Lusher 's  map  are  uniformly  represented  by  continu- 
ous faint  lines,  and  that  none  of  the  many  Indian  trails 
or  traces  are  designated  by  a name. 

There  is  one  trail,  and  one  only,  that  forms  a 
marked  exception  to  all  other  trails;  and  consists  of  a 
dotted  line,  commencing  on  the  west  side  of  the  Missis- 
sippi River  (with  two  dots  on  the  west  side  thereof),  the 
commencing  point  being  opposite  the  name  “Helena,”  ev- 
idently the  present  Helena,  Arkansas,  this  being  one  of 
the  few  places  on  the  map  with  an  English  name. 

This  dotted  line  on  the  east  side  of  the  river  trends 
east  by  north,  passing  near  the  southern  end  of  Beaver 
Dam  Lake,  until  it  nearly  reaches  Coldwater  River,  where 
it  is  joined  by  another  dotted  line,  commencing  on  the 
east  side  of  the  Mississippi  River,  about  opposite  the 
north  end  of  Beaver  Dam  Lake;  running  thence  east- 
ward to  where  the  two  dotted  lines  meet ; and  thence  the 
dotted  line  crosses  Coldwater  and  runs  northeastward 
until  it  ends  with  joining  a regular  Indian  trail  about 
six  computed  miles  from  the  point  where  the  short-cut 
Indian  trail  crosses  Pigeon  Roost  Creek,  and  about  12 
computed  miles  southwest  of  where  Holly  Springs  now 
is.  This  dotted  line  is  plainly  marked  “Helena  trace”; 
whereas  none  of  the  many  Indian  traces  or  continuous 
lines  have  any  names  marked  on  them. 

It  is  evident  that  this  “Helena  trace”  was  of  recent 
origin,  and  a pathway  made  by  the  white  man;  and  be- 


124 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


ing  the  only  trace  trending  east  and  west  through  the 
Mississippi  swamps,  gives  emphasis  to  the  fact  that  there 
was  no  Indian  trace  or  trail  that  led  to  the  Mississippi 
River  at  any  point  except  to  the  fourth  Chickasaw 
Bluff,  to  which  three  Indian  trails  led  from  the  Chicka- 
saw home,  where  Pontotoc  now  is. 


And  now  as  to  maps  in  general  and  Lusher’s  map 
in  particular,  I will  say  that  I give  scant  credit  thereto 
unless  the  maps  were  made  upon  actual  survey.  Thus, 
why  should  anyone  put  any  great  confidence  in  the  favor- 
ite map  of  Prof.  Lewis,  viz : that  of  De  L’  Isle,  published 
in  1718,  or  177  years  after  De  Soto  discovered  the  Mis- 
sissippi ; and  this  map,  according  to  the  professor,  was  the 
first  that  undertook  to  locate  the  place  where  the  river 
was  discovered? 

Simply  because  a man  is  a cartographer  he  is  not 
inspired  with  the  gift  of  location ; for  at  last  the  accu- 
racy of  the  map  must  depend  on  the  knowledge  of  the 
cartographer  as  to'  the  real  location  of  any  place  which 
he  undertakes  to  place  on  a piece  of  paper.  What  source 
of  knowledge  did  De  L’  Isle  possess  as  to  where  the 
river  was  discovered  that  we  have  not?  Probably  he 
had  not  so  much  information  as  we,  for  the  Biedma  and 
Ranjel  narratives  have  only  recently  come  to  light;  and 
it  is  practically  certain  he  knew  absolutely  nothing  as  to 
the  topography  of  the  country.  Prof.  Lewis  rejects  as 
worthless  most  of  the  maps  relative  to  this  matter. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


125 


To  illustrate  the  utter  worthlessness  and  unreli- 
ability of  some  of  the  work  of  cartographers,  consult  the 
Atlas  Vol.  10,  p.  4 of  the  Century  Dictionary,  which 
undertakes  to  show  the  route  pursued  by  various  dis- 
coverers on  this  continent,  and  among  them  the  route  of 
De  Soto.  According  to  this  map  De  Soto  did  not  go  far 
enough  north  in  Mississippi  to  reach  the  Chickasaw 
country,  and  crossed  the  great  river  about  where  Vicks- 
burg now  is. 

Probably  more  money  and  talent  were  bestowed  on 
bringing  out  that  great  dictionary  than  on  any  other  in 
the  history  of  this  country,  still  no  one  who  has  care- 
fully studied  this  matter  can  defend  this  so-called  map. 
showing  the  route  of  De  Soto  through  Mississippi. 


A word  as  to  Lusher’s  map.  The  copy  I examined 
belongs  to  Captain  J.  D.  Fontaine,  nestor  of  the  New 
Albany  bar,  who  kindly  lent  it  to  E.  T.  Winston  of  Pon- 
totoc to  send  to  me  for  examination,  with  many  injunc- 
tions for  safe  keeping  and  its  safe  return.  From  outside 
to  outside  it  is  18x24  inches,  of  fine  workmanship,  is 
on  quite  thin,  but  good  paper,  folds  up  book-like,  with 
extra  good  binding,  so  that  it  can  be  carried  in  the  coat 
pocket.  This  is  the  inscription  on  it : “Map  of  the  land 
ceded  by  the  Chickasaws  to  the  United  States  in  1832 
and  1834  from  actual  survey  by  Henry  M.  Lusher, 
draughtsman  in  the  office  of  the  Surveyor  General  of 
lands  in  Missis.  Ceded  by  the  Chickasaws,  1835.  Ap- 
proved John  Bell,  Surveyor  of  land  in  Missis.  Ceded  by 
the  Chickasaws,  Benja.  Reynolds  Chickasaw  Agent.” 


126 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Beneath  the  above  in  small  print  there  is  this: 
“Pendleton’s  Lithography,  Boston  Eddy.  delt.  on  stone.” 
Of  course  there  was  the  usual  display  of  capitals,  etc., 
but  I have  made  a literal  copy  of  the  verbiage;  from 
which  I think  it  appears  that  the  map  is  as  authentic  and 
correct  as  one  could  be  made  in  1835.  The  Indians  had 
not  then  left  Mississippi,  but  were  still  occupying  their 
ancestral  homes. 

In  a letter  Mr.  Winston  called  my  attention  to  what 
he  termed  the  main  Chickasaw  trail,  a part  of  which  is 
indistinctly  shown  on  Lusher’s  map,  and  which,  coming 
from  the  south,  intersected  the  Tombigbee  on  the  east, 
where  Columbus  now  is. 

Winston  then  quotes  from  Claiborne,  saying  that 
De  Soto  followed  an  Indian  trail  or  buffalo  path  some 
five  miles  up  to  Lincecum’s  shoals  just  above  the  mouth 
of  the  Tibbee  and  a little  below  the  present  town  of 
Waverly.  The  Tombigbee  here  is  bifurcated  by  an 
island,  the  first  obstruction  below  Butahatchie.  The 
gravel  discharged  from  this  stream  lodged  against  the 
island  and  rendered  both  channels  fordable  a great  part 
of  the  year,  and  this  is  the  only  point  where  the  Span- 
iards could  have  forded  in  December.  It  was  the  cross- 
ing used  by  the  Choctaws  when  going  to  their  villages 
and  hunting  grounds  east  of  the  Tombigbee.  The  trail 
struck  here  a stretch  of  prairie  between  Tibbee  and 
Hanging  Kettle  creeks,  and  crossed  the  present  Mobile 
and  Ohio  railroad  at  Lookhattan,  thence  a little  west  of 
the  railroad  by  Muldon,  Prairie  station  and  Egypt. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


127 


The  early  settlers  of  this  portion  of  Mississippi  re- 
member the  well  worn,  beaten  trail,  long  disused  but 
distinctly  defined,  and  can  to  this  day  trace  it  from  plan- 
tation to  plantation. 

On  leaving  Egypt  the  trail  tended  northwest  up  the 
ridge  known  as  Featherston’s  ridge,  through  a series  of 
glades  three  or  four  miles  west  of  Okalona  and  up  the 
second  bottom  on  the  east  side  of  Suckartouchee  Creek. 
There  it  struck  Pontotoc  ridge  four  miles  east  of  the  an- 
cient Chickasaw  Council  House.  Near  this  point  stood 
the  first  Chickasaw  town,  and  in  the  vicinity  the  Spaniards 
went  into  winter  quarters. 

Winston  then  gives  the  route  of  De  Soto  as  passing 
thence  up  the  Pontotoc  ridge  to  New  Albany  and  thence 
(as  he  thought)  along  the  short  cut  to  the  Chickasaw 
Bluff’s;  and  this  in  the  opinion  of  Mr.  Winston  was  the 
route  over  which  De  Soto  traveled,  and  discovered  the 
great  river  where  Memphis  now  is.  For  years  he  has 
studied  this  matter  very  carefully  from  every  angle,  and 
being  on  the  ground  and  understanding  the  topography 
of  the  country  thoroughly,  his  opinion  is  entitled  to  great 
weight. 


Remember  there  was  no  Indian  trail  towards  Tuni- 
ca County  or  in  that  direction.  If  the  Indians,  going 
single  file,  found  it  impracticable  to  have  a trail  through 
these  swamps,  how  could  De  Soto  expect  to  cut  out  a 
way  for  his  horses,  army,  their  baggage,  etc.  ? All  In- 
dian trails  wind  in  and  out  in  a tortuous  manner,  because 


128 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


they  knew  not  only  the  impassable,  but  the  bad  places 
and  these  they  went  around.  Although  the  Pigeon 
Roost  road  has  been  changed  and  partially  straightened 
out,  first  by  order  of  the  public  authorities,  then  by  the 
Pigeon  Roost  and  Chulahoma  Turnpike  Company,  chart- 
ered October  31,  1853,  when  the  road  was  rebuilt  and 
made  into  a plank  road,  still  it  is  today  one  of  the  crook- 
edest  roads  leading  from  Memphis,  thus  bearing  the  un- 
mistakable impress  of  its  Indian  origin. 

Why  attribute  to  De  Soto  the  monumental  folly  of 
refusing  to  travel  either  one  of  three  well  defined 
trails,  leading  to  the  greatest  and  best  known  headland 
in  all  the  lower  Mississippi  valley  on  the  great  river, 
and  on  the  other  hand  deliberately  choosing  to  go  through 
the  impenetrable  swamps  where  the  Indians  dared  not 
make  a trail  for  themselves? 

Bear  in  mind  also  that  there  was  high  land  across 
the  river  from  Memphis,  where  there  are  even  to  this 
day  Indian  Mounds,  where  Mound  City  now  is,  evidently 
named  after  the  Mounds,  and  from  which  the  Indians 
unquestionably  had  trails  leading  northward  and  west- 
ward. 

Looking  now  to  the  three  favorite  narratives  of 
Prof.  Lewis,  we  find  that  they  point  with  unerring  accu- 
racy to  the  short  Chickasaw  trail  as  the  one  used  by 
De  Soto. 

Biedma  is  commended  for  giving  the  details  for 
directions  and  distances  and  he  says,  “we  remained  here 
two  months  (meaning  near  the  Chickasaws)  getting 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


129 


ready  what  were  necessary  of  saddles,  lances  and  targets 
and  then  left  taking  the  direction  to  the  northwest , to- 
wards a province  called  Alibamo.”  Mark,  they  went 
northwest,  which  accurately  described  the  direction  of 
the  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  and  is  in  accord  with  Lusher’s  map. 

As  the  expedition  started  in  the  direction  as  we 
claim,  the  next  inquiry  is  as  to  the  character  of  the  coun- 
try over  which  it  passed  upon  which  so  much  stress  is 
laid  by  Professor  Lewis.  He  says  Ranjel  is  the  most 
accurate  of  all  the  narrators  and  we  will  quote  not  in 
part,  but  the  exact  words  used  by  Ranjel  as  follows: 

“Saturday,  the  last  of  April,  the  army  set  out 
from  the  place  of  barricade  and  marched  nine  days 
through  a deserted  country  and  by  a rough  way, 
mountainous  and  swampy,  until  May  8,  when  they 
came  to  the  first  village  of  Quizquiz,  etc.” 

Mark,  in  the  first  place,  that  they  went  “by  a rough 
way”  which  implies  that  they  were  traveling  over  a 
“way,”  which  means,  I think,  along  an  Indian  trail,  for 
in  common  parlance  the  trail  might  very  well  be  termed 
“a  rough  way,”  as  no  doubt  it  was. 

But  the  important  feature  is  that  this  rough  way 
was  “mountainous  and  swampy.”  At  first  blush  the 
words  “mountainous  and  swampy”  might  seem  contra- 
dictory ; but  when  reference  is  had  to  the  topography  and 
character  of  the  country  over  which  the  expedition  actu- 
ally passed,  I insist  no  other  two  single  words  could  more 
accurately  describe  the  road  De  Soto  traveled.  The 
abrupt  hills  on  both  sides  of  Holly  Springs,  being  spurs 


130 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


from  the  Tippah  highland,  even  to  this  day  rear  their 
heads  skyward,  as  silent  witnesses  or  sentinels,  attesting 
the  verity  of  Ranjel’s  statement  where  he  says  the  coun- 
try was  mountainous.  This  no  man,  however  learned, 
can  deny. 

It  is  equally  certain  that  no  mountainous  country 
could  be  encountered  by  De  Soto  had  he  turned  westward 
on  leaving  where  New  Albany  now  is,  as  Professor 
Lewis  says  he  did.  Was  the  Professor  impressed  with 
this  important  fact,  when,  in  quoting  Ranjel,  he  omitted 
the  word  “mountainous”  ? 

But  it  may  be  said  what  of  the  word  “swampy”  used 
by  Ranjel;  and  I answer  it  very  correctly  fits  the  river 
and  creek  bottoms  over  which  the  Chickasaw  trail 
passed. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  the  narrative  of  the  Gentle- 
man of  Elvas  seems  to  be  much  relied  upon  in  this  con- 
nection, I will  next  quote  from  that,  which  is  as  follows , 

“He  accordingly  set  out  for  Quizquiz,  and 
marched  seven  days  through  a wilderness,  having 
many  pondy  places,  with  thick  forests,  fordable, 
however,  on  horseback,  all  to  some  basins  or  lakes 
that  were  swum.” 

The  original  sentence  may  have  been  in  good 
Spanish ; if  so,  the  last  part  has  not  been  happily  trans- 
lated into  English.  Nevertheless  the  import  of  the  text 
is  clear,  and  the  only  question  is — did  parts  of  the  trail 
lead  over  or  through  places  as  above  described.  Un- 
questionably they  did. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


131 


The  very  fact  that  the  Chickasaws  had  a long  trail 
on  top  of  the  Pontotoc  ridge  going  directly  north  near 
to  Bolivar,  Tennessee,  and  turning  thence  abruptly  west, 
and  that  they  also  had  the  intermediate  trail  both  of 
which  were  so  roundabout,  and  so  much  further  to  the 
Bluffs  than  the  less  used  Chickasaw  short  trail,  of  itself 
is  a demonstration  that  the  Indians  regarded  the  short 
trail  as  a swampy,  boggy  and  dangerous  trail,  and  not  fit 
for  use,  except  in  dry  seasons  or  in  emergencies. 

Any  observant  man  70  years  old,  and  who  knew  or 
passed  over  the  river  and  creek  bottoms  on  this  trail,  or 
over  the  intermediate  trail  in  his  early  years,  will,  with- 
out  hesitation  state  that  they  were  covered  with  thick 
forests,  and  interspersed  with  canebrakes,  lagoons, 
sloughs,  cypress  brakes  and  the  like,  which  made  them 
near  impassable  and  veritable  wildernesses.  Where  is 
the  man  described  that  will  dispute  these  facts  ? 

As  stated  by  E.  T.  Winston  the  Indians  knew  every 
foot  of  these  trails  through  the  bottoms  especially,  knew 
the  solid  ground  from  that  which  appeared  solid,  but  in 
reality  was  a quagmire;  knew  the  shallow  water  from 
the  deep  water;  the  hard  bottom  from  quicksand  bot- 
tom; and  knew  when  and  where  to  cross  the  streams  or 
lagoons,  sloughs,  etc.,  and  could  pass  over  almost  dry 
shod  where  De  Soto  and  his  men,  burdened  with  armor 
and  baggage,  and  with  his  horses,  would  find  an  almost 
impassable  way. 

Who  doubts  the  correctness  of  these  deductions? 


132 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


View  the  situation  from  another  angle.  J.  J.  Rawl- 
ings died  in  Memphis  in  1900,  aged  92  years  and  was 
then  the  oldest  inhabitant,  an  honored  man  and  alto- 
gether a picturesque  character;  and  in  the  evening  of 
life  he  wrote  some  of  his  reminiscences,  which  are  pre- 
served in  pamphlet  form.  He  was  born  in  1808,  came  to 
the  Bluffs  in  1824,  before  Memphis  was  incorporated; 
and  says  that  in  1826  or  1827,  he  and  Marcus  B.  Win- 
chester (the  first  mayor  of  Memphis)  and  W.  D.  Dab- 
ney (soon  to  be  a very  prominent  man)  went  down  into 
Mississippi  to  visit  the  Chickasaws,  and  be  there  when 
the  Indian  agent  made  his  disbursements,  so  they  could 
collect  what  the  Indians  owed.  After  dancing  all  night, 
for  more  than  one  night,  with  the  dark-eyed  beauties  of 
the  forest,  these  three  hardy  young  pioneers  started 
home,  when  Rawlings  relates  this  incident : 

“On  nearing  home  we  were  pressing  our  horses 
to  reach  a house  we  thought  was  ahead,  we  never 
found  it.  We  got  lost  in  Cold  Water  Bottom,  a 
dark  and  dismal  place.  We  worried  about  in  the 
dark  until  we  found  it  was  no  use.  Our  horses  be- 
ing very  tired,  we  stripped  them  and  turned  them 
loose  to  eat  pea  vines.  We  commenced  preparing 
to  stay  in  that  horrible  place  all  night.  Our  first 
effort  was  to  get  a light — no  matches  in  those  days. 
We  had  spunk  and  steel  and  with  all  our  efforts 
we  could  never  get  a fire.  We  gave  it  up  for  a bad 
job  and  spread  our  saddles  on  the  ground.  Sleep 
was  not  expected.  Foxes  and  wolves  were  barking 
all  around  us,  owls  hooting — plenty  of  music — 
that  was  not  the  worst  of  it,  there  were  millions  of 
mosquitoes  to  the  square  inch  and  it  was  as  much  as 
we  could  do  to  save  our  lives  from  the  infernal 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


133 


pests.  Next  day  we  reached  home,  after  a sleepless 
night.  On  looking  in  the  glass  we  did  not  know 
ourselves.  You  could  not  put  the  point  of  a pin  on 
our  faces  and  hands  where  there  was  not  a mos- 
quito bite.” 

And  still  Professor  Lewis  would  have  us  believe  that 
it  was  almost  a picnic  trip  for  De  Soto,  in  1541,  to  go 
through  these  swamps  with  his  army  and  horsemen, 
without  a guide,  where  white  men  never  trod  before, 
and  where  even  the  Indians  did  not  venture,  except  in 
dry  weather  or  in  great  emergencies. 


134 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


CHAPTER  VI. 

DE  SOTO  AT  THE  CHICKASAW  BLUFFS. 

We  now  come  to  a consideration  of  the  topography, 
and  general  lay  of  the  land  at  and  adjacent  to  the  fourth 
Chickasaw  Bluffs  whereon  Memphis  is  enthroned,  and 
declared  by  some  of  the  most  eminent  historians  to  be 
the  place  where  the  Mississippi  River  was  discovered  by 
Hernando  De  Soto. 

The  point  where  Madison  Avenue  intersects  Front 
Street  is  locally  considered  about  the  center  of  the  city, 
though  not  quite  midway  between  the  north  and  south 
extremities  of  the  bluff  where  it  intersects  the  Mississippi ; 
and  moreover  this  point  is  only  about  400  to  500  feet 
from  the  water’s  edge;  and  doubtless  for  these  reasons 
it  is  the  first  point  mentioned  by  Pashby  in  stating  the 
altitude  of  various  places  in  the  city. 

The  Bluff  rises  at  Madison  and  Front  (88)  eighty- 
eight  feet  above  low  water ; and  further  below,  at  the 
Indian  Mounds,  called  Jackson  Mounds,  and  now 
forming  De  Soto  Park,  the  Bluff  is  (102)  one  hundred 
and  two  feet  above  low  water.  Before  the  advent  of 
the  white  man  there  sprang  from  the  tops  of  these  bluffs 
a giant  forest,  many  of  the  trees  being  over  one  hundred 
feet  high,  so  that  the  tops  of  this  great  forest  rose  over 
(200)  two  hundred  feet  above  low  water. 

To  any  one  passing  the  bluffs  on  the  river,  which 
flows  through  a flat  alluvial  delta,  this  great  headland 
could  not  fail  to  make  a deep  and  pleasing  impression. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


135 


And  moreover  the  bluffs  were  but  an  extension  or  an 
elbow  from  the  Pontotoc  ridge  or  Tippah  highlands,  on 
the  southern  projection  of  which  the  Chickasaws  had 
their  home. 

Wolf  River  rises  in  Tippah  County,  flows  first 
northward,  then  westward  and  enters  the  Mississippi  at 
the  north  end  of  the  bluffs;  and  in  this  connection  it  is 
well  to  remember  that  for  miles  up  stream  from  its 
mouth  an  abrupt  bluff  rises  from  its  eastern  and  south- 
ern shores. 

Nonconnah  was  first  called  Chickasaw  Creek,  and 
would  in  Europe,  be  called  a river.  With  its  meanders 
it  is  probably  50  miles  long.  Its  headwaters  also  com- 
mence in  the  Tippah  highlands,  but  lower  down  in  Mar- 
shall County,  Mississippi ; and  first  trend  a little  north 
of  west  and  then  westward,  flowing  into  the  Mississippi 
at  the  southern  end  of  the  Chickasaw  Bluff,  only  about 
four  or  five  miles  from  the  mouth  of  Wolf  River.  C.  D. 
Johnson,  secretary  of  the  Cossitt  Library,  called  to  my 
attention  a quaint  small  volume,  entitled  The  Namgator ; 
the  first  edition  of  which  appeared  in  1801,  written  by 
a riverman  for  rivermen  navigating  the  Mississippi  and 
some  of  its  tributaries;  and  having  wood  cuts  of  the 
Mississippi,  very  creditable  for  that  early  day.  In  refer- 
ence to  the  fourth  Chickasaw  Bluff  the  author  says : 

“Wolf  (called  by  Hutchins),  Margot  River. 
This  is  a handsome  little  river  on  the  left  side.  The 
French  had  a fort  here  just  below  the  mouth  of  the 
river,  called  Assumption  Fort,  built  in  the  year 
1736,  during  their  wars  with  the  Chickasaws,  but 
in  the  year  following  a peace  ensued,  and  the  fort 


136 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


was  demolished.  A good  landing  may  be  had  at 
Wolf  River,  by  pulling  over  after  you  pass  the 
four  islands  above. 

Fort  Pike  formally  stood  just  below  Wolf 
River,  but  a better  situation  was  pitched  upon  and  a 
fort  built  two  miles  lower  down  the  bluff  called 
Fort  Pickering. 

It  occupies  the  commanding  ground  of  the 
fourth  Chickasaw  Bluff,  on  the  left  bank  of  the 
Mississippi. 

The  United  States  have  a military  factor 
here,  with  a few  soldiers.  The  settlement  is  thin 
and  composed  of  what  is  called  the  half  breed,  that 
is  a mixture  of  the  whites  and  Indians,  a race  of 
men  too  indolent  to  do  any  permanent  good  either 
for  themselves  or  for  society.  A landing  may  be 
had  a little  above  Fort  Pickering,  but  it  is  not  a 
very  good  one. 

The  fourth  bluff  affords  a commanding,  airy, 
pleasant  and  extensive  situation  for  a settlement, 
and  the  soil  is  remarkably  fertile.  Opposite  the 
bluff  or  Wolf  River,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi ; there  used  to  stand  a Spanish  fort,  now 
demolished.  When  this  post  was  in  possession  of 
the  Spaniards  the  commandant  had  a road  cut  in  a 
straight  line  from  the  mouth  of  Chickasaw  Creek 
(a  small  creek  two  miles  below  Fort  Pickering) 
to  Wolf  River  for  the  purpose  of  taking  exercise 
on  horseback.” 

Thus  we  see  the  fourth  Chickasaw  Bluff  was  a con- 
spicuous headland,  Wolf  River  and  Nonconnah  being 
conspicuous  streams  entering  the  river  at  the  north  and 
south  sides  of  the  bluff  respectively.  These  bluffs  run 
back  forming  a backbone  or  ridge  for  many  miles,  and 
constitutes  the  watershed  between  Wolf  and  Nonconnah, 
the  ridge  extending  back  to  the  Tippah  highlands,  or 
Pontotoc  ridge,  and  being  an  elbow  or  arm  therefrom. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


137 


I learn  from  J.  Paul  Gaines,  a well  known  civil  en- 
gineer, that  this  ridge  is  called  to  this  day  Poplar  Ridge, 
on  account  of  the  splendid  trees  which  abounded  thereon, 
locally  miscalled  poplars,  and  which  furnished  one  of 
the  most  valuable  timbers  on  this  continent.  In  point  of 
fact  the  so-called  poplar  is  the  tulip  tree.  In  the  flower- 
ing season  the  tulip  tree  bursts  radiantly  into  bloom, 
with  exquisitely  scented  and  strangely  colored  flowers. 
Having  a lofty  grey  stem  and  crown  of  beautiful  leaves 
the  tulip  tree  is  one  of  the  most  notable  of  our  forests, 
and  attains  in  the  south  a growth  of  great  luxury. 

It  was  on  this  ridge  that  the  Chickasaws  sometimes 
traveled  from  their  home  to  the  Chickasaw  Bluff  ; and 
which  I have  denominated  the  intermediate  trail,  and 
which  crosses  few  streams,  and  which  plainly  appears  on 
Lusher’s  map. 

It  is  possible  that  De  Soto  came  over  this  trail,  but 
not  probable;  for  I believe  he  traveled  over  the  short-cut 
trail,  already  fully  described.  That  he  came  over  one 
or  the  other  is  the  important  consideration,  and  this  I 
believe  appears  beyond  a reasonable  doubt. 


Professor  Lewis  wrought  out  an  argument  against 
the  supposition  that  De  Soto  discovered  the  Mississippi 
river  on  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  based  mainly  on  alleged 
quotations  from  Garcilaso  de  la  Vega,  one  purpose  of 
which,  even  if  not  so  intended,  served  the  purpose  to  dis- 
credit that  eminent  historian. 

Later  I will  undertake  to  show  that  he  misquotes 
Garcilaso,  called  by  him  the  “Inca”;  but  at  this  juncture 


138 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


my  purpose  is  to  show  that  the  professor  was  entirely 
ignorant  of  the  topography  and  geology  of  the  country  in 
question ; otherwise  I believe  he  would  not  have  made  the 
statements  he  did. 

Bear  in  mind  that  his  friend,  Dr.  Rowland,  very  cor- 
rectly points  out  that  an  accurate  knowledge  of  the 
topography  and  geology  of  the  country  is  very  essential 
to  a right  understanding  of  the  matters  involved. 

In  order  to  have  a clear  understanding  of  the  ques- 
tion here  at  issue  I will  quote  that  part  of  the  professor’s 
alleged  quotation  from  Garcilaso  in  the  precise  words  of 
the  professor,  as  follows : 

“Because  of  many  streams  around  there  they 

could  not  use  their  horses.” 

The  professor  then  adds : 

“It  will  readily  be  seen  that  this  description 

does  not  apply  to  Fort  Pickering.” 

The  professor  evidently  places  reliance  in  the  state- 
ment attributed  to  Garcilaso  that  there  were  “numerous 
streams”  adjacent  to  the  point  of  discovery.  That  there 
were  numerous  streams  all  over  the  bluffs  cannot  be  suc- 
cessfully denied. 

As  stated,  what  is  called  Poplar  Ridge  is  a narrow 
ridge  of  land  extending  from  the  Tippah  highlands  some 
fifty  miles  westward,  stopping  abruptly  at  the  Missis- 
sippi river,  the  west  end  of  the  ridge  constituting  what 
from  time  immemorial  has  been  called  the  Chickasaw 
Bluffs.  What  was  and  is  the  character  of  the  soil  or 
ground  of  these  bluffs?  It  is  what  is  called  a loess  for- 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


139 


mation,  consisting  of  a fine  siliceous  loam  of  a pale  yel- 
low color,  having  in  it  considerable  sand  almost  im- 
palpably  fine.  Beneath  this  formation  there  is  to  be 
found  different  colored  sands  of  varying  thickness,  lay- 
ing in  different  strata,  and  likewise  there  are  strata  of 
gravel. 

It  may  be  added  ( though  not  pertinent  to  the  present 
discussion)  that  some  three  hundred  feet  below  the  sur- 
face a thick,  blue  clay,  impervious  to  water,  is  found, 
which  when  pierced,  is  found  to  lay  upon  a very  fine 
white  water-bearing  sand,  and  from  this  sand  gushes  up 
an  inexhaustible  supply  of  pure  artesian  water  with 
which  the  city  is  supplied. 

With  a given  high,  narrow  ridge  of  ground  com- 
posed as  above  indicated ; with  an  annual  rain  fall  of 
about  fifty  inches,  how  could  it  be  otherwise  than  that  this 
ridge  would,  in  course  of  time,  be  furrowed  with  numer- 
ous streams? 

And  with  a primeval  forest,  cane,  and  underbrush 
springing  from  the  soil  and  over  the  ground  decayed 
vegetation  holding  water  almost  like  a sponge,  how  could 
it  be  otherwise,  than  that  a part  of  the  rainwater  would 
percolate  the  loess,  and  flow  along  lower  horizontal 
strata  of  sand  or  gravel,  finding  an  outlet  as  springs, 
where  these  strata  were  cut  by  the  streams,  locally  called 
bayous  ? 

This  is  precisely  what  took  place. 


140 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


It  would  be  a great  mistake  to  suppose,  as  appar- 
ently assumed  by  Professor  Lewis,  that  the  lay  of  the 
land  at  the  top  of  the  bluffs  and  backwards  towards  the 
east  was  a flat  expanse.  Far  to  the  contrary  it  was  much 
broken  by  numerous  small  streams. 

Even  present  appearances  show  this  in  part,  but  we 
must  remember  that  the  most  of  these  small  streams,  hills 
and  hollows  have  been  obliterated  in  the  building  of  the 
city.  Thus,  my  office  is  in  the  Cotton  Exchange  Build- 
ing, a twenty  story  skyscraper,  fronting  Madison,  Sec- 
ond and  South  Court  Streets  opposite  Court  Square. 
No  one  now  would  ever  suppose  that  formerly  a small 
stream  flowed  where  it  now  stands;  and  yet  when  some 
years  since  the  foundations  of  this  building  were  laid, 
some  bridge  timbers,  roots  of  trees  and  the  bed  of  a 
small  stream  were  found  twenty  feet  below  the  surface. 

Very  little  of  the  storm  water  ran  or  runs  now  west- 
ward  from  the  bluff  into  the  river,  because  on  an  average 
not  exceeding  one  thousand  feet  from  the  water’s  edge, 
the  surface  slopes  eastward,  carrying  the  water  into 
Bayou  Gayoso,  which  is  about  one-quarter  of  a mile 
from  the  river  going  east  on  Madison,  the  bed  of  the 
bayou  being  about  forty  feet  lower  than  the  bluff  at 
Madison  and  Front. 

The  bluffs  were  criss-crossed  by  numerous  streams, 
the  chief  one  being  Bayou  Gayoso,  some  five  and  a half 
miles  long,  running  in  a main  north  by  west  direction, 
emptying  into  Wolf  river  about  2500  feet  from  its  junc- 
tion with  the  Mississippi,  and  with  its  east  and  west 
forks,  the  Little  Betty  and  De  Soto  drains  the  southern 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


141 


and  central  divisions  of  the  present  city.  The  main  af- 
fluent of  Bayou  Gayoso  is  Quimby  Bayou,  something 
less  than  four  and  a half  miles  long  from  its  head  to 
where  it  empties  into  Bayou  Gayoso,  and  with  its  tribu- 
taries drains  the  northern  part  of  the  city. 

Probably  there  is  not  one  person  in  ten  thousand 
in  Memphis  today  who  are  aware  of  the  fact  that  as 
late  as  1831,  Bayou  Gayoso  spread  out  into  a large  lake 
just  north  of  the  old  Louisville  & Nashville  depot  ad- 
jacent to  Second  Street;  still  such  was  the  case,  and  it 
was  known  as  Catfish  Bay,  because  of  the  abundance  of 
fish,  and  especially  cat  fish,  to  be  found  in  its  waters. 

Flat  boats,  fishing  house  boats  and  other  water  craft 
in  the  early  days  came  from  the  Mississippi  up  Wolf 
and  then  into  Gayoso  for  good  fish  and  safe  anchorage 
in  Catfish  Bay;  and  many  fishermen  built  little  shanties 
on  the  shores  of  this  bay.  A movement  was  set  on  foot 
to  clear  them  away  as  unsightly  and  a nuisance,  which 
fired  the  wrath  of  these  Catfish  Bay  inhabitants.  Old 
Ike  Rawlings  was  considered  a fixture  in  the  Mayor’s 
chair  and  advocated  the  removal,  but  a young  lawyer 
lately  from  Kentucky,  named  Seth  Wheatley,  took  up 
the  cudgel  for  Catfish  Bay  and  its  inhabitants  and  de- 
feated Rawlings  for  Mayor  in  1831.  The  end  of  Cat- 
fish Bay  is  thus  set  forth  by  Keating  (p.  184)  : 

“Two  nights  after  Wheatley’s  election  as 
mayor,  a perfect  sluice  of  tan-ooze  and  filth,  from 
Carr’s  tannery,  was  sent  into  the  bayou,  and  thus 
found  its  way  to  the  bay ; the  waters  of  which  were 
so  polluted  that  the  fish  were  killed  and  the  water 
could  no  longer  be  used  for  any  domestic  sendee. 


142 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Great  indignation  followed,  much  of  it  expressed  in 
the  adjectives  and  expletives  usual  to  the  orators  of 
Pinch,  but  Catfish  Bay  was  ruined,  and  the  people 
quickly  left  it  and  its  shores.  Some  of  the  boats 
were  floated  out,  others  were  broken  up  and  the 
shanties  were  taken  down  and  moved  to  other  lo- 
calities. The  merchants  and  citizens  were  very  lib- 
eral, and  the  change  was  effected  in  a very  short 
time  and  at  last  with  the  best  of  feeling.  After  a 
few  days  all  were  quieted  down,  and  the  names  Cat- 
fish Bay  and  Pinch  Gut  were  dropped.” 

Probably  there  are  not  a half  dozen  people  in  Mem- 
phis who  know  that  the  site  of  Carr’s  Tannery  referred 
to  was  on  a large  bayou  in  the  present  Southern  Railroad 
yards  between  Madison  and  Adams  Avenues,  bounded  on 
the  west  by  Lauderdale,  and  that  this  large  bayou  flows 
now  through  brick  culverts  under  the  surface  since  the 
building  of  the  first  railroad  into  Memphis  in  1857. 

Speaking  of  fish  it  may  be  mentioned  that  in  early 
days  numerous  cool  springs  were  dotted  all  along  the 
course  of  these  bayous  which  cut  deep  down  into  the  soil 
so  that  there  was  cool  running  water  in  the  bayous  all 
the  year  round.  The  veteran  and  retired  banker,  Miles 
S.  Buckingham,  in  his  reminiscent  moods,  is  fond  of 
telling  how  in  early  days,  when  the  dogwoods  were  in 
blossom,  he  would  take  his  hook  and  line  any  day  and 
bring  home  a long  string  of  the  finest  game  fish,  caught 
from  the  cool  waters  of  the  bayou  south  of  Vance  Ave- 
nue. 


What  a beautiful,  nay,  was  not  the  Chickasaw  Bluff 
country  an  ideal,  place  for  a home  of  the  children  of  the 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


143 


forest?  Might  we  not  expect  permanent  Indian  villages 
on  the  bluffs  proper  and  the  adjacent  country? 

As  we  have  seen  the  old  Chickasaw  trail  coming 
from  the  southeast  after  crossing  Nonconnah  and  along 
the  line  of  the  present  Pigeon  Roost  Road,  passed  up 
Brown’s  Hill,  thus  abruptly  ascending  from  the  low  to 
high  land ; and  in  a short  distance  there  commences  a 
beautiful  expanse  of  almost  level  country,  some  six  or 
seven  miles  from  the  Court  House  in  Memphis. 

In  my  opinion  this  was  the  vicinity  of  Quizquiz,  the 
first  village  reached  by  De  Soto  near  the  great  river. 

It  must  not  be  supposed,  however,  that  Poplar 
Ridge  afforded  the  only  country  adapted  to  permanent 
villages  for  the  Indians.  Quite  to  the  contrary,  the  coun- 
try north  of  Wolf  River  and  south  of  Nonconnah  fur- 
nished ideal  conditions  for  permanent  villages  for  the 
Indians ; and  moreover  at  one  time,  how  remote  no  one 
knows,  they  lived  in  the  vicinity  of  the  present  Caple- 
ville,  Tennessee,  some  twelve  miles  from  Memphis,  where 
there  were  in  early  days  abundant  springs,  but  now,  alas ! 
the  most  of  them  are  gone,  or  else  so  shrunken  as  to  be 
scarce  shadows  of  their  former  proportions. 

Nearly  due  east  of  the  Ila  Douglass  homestead,  say 
eleven  miles  from  Memphis  and  one  mile  from  the  Pigeon 
Roost  Road,  and  across  Little  Nonconnah  Creek,  there 
is  to  this  day  in  a cultivated  field,  the  remnants  of  a salt 
lick  covering  about  one-fourth  of  an  acre  of  ground ; a 
geologic  feature  of  the  country  as  rare  as  it  was  valu- 
able to  the  Indians. 


144 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


About  a mile  in  a southeasterly  direction  from  the 
lick  there  were  in  my  boyhood  days  two  Indian  old  fields 
surrounded  by  dense  forests;  about  one-quarter  of  a 
mile  apart.  It  was  the  custom  of  the  Chickasaws  to  live 
apart  to  a large  extent,  doubtless  being  taught  by  ex- 
perience that  this  contributed  to  their  good  health  and 
general  well  being.  One  of  these  Indians’  fields  is  on 
the  estate  of  my  late  sister,  Mrs.  Mary  Lou  Malone 
Ellis. 

About  one  mile  west  of  the  Pigeon  Roost  Road  and 
some  two  miles  west  of  the  salt  lick,  there  is  upon  the 
estate  of  the  late  George  R.  Tuggle,  a considerable  In- 
dian mound,  formerly  having  large  trees  standing  there- 
on. These  trees  have  been  cut  long  since,  and  the  ad- 
jacent ground  put  in  cultivation.  Near  this  mound  and 
on  top  of  a high  ridge  there  were  two  pondy  places, 
such  as  referred  to  by  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas.  When 
I was  a boy  these  pondy  places  were  of  considerable 
extent ; in  fact,  were  miniature  lakes,  having  clear  water 
in  them  the  year  round,  and  in  winter  I have  often  seen 
them  covered  with  wild  ducks  and  other  wild  fowls. 
One  of  them  has  been  drained  for  agricultural  purposes, 
and  the  other  is  much  shrunken  in  size.  George  M. 
Douglass  owns  the  property  on  which  the  salt  lick  can 
now  be  seen.  His  parents  were  among  the  early  set- 
tlers, he  now  being  on  the  shady  side  of  seventy,  but 
hale  and  hearty.  He  well  remembers  being  shown  when 
a boy  a large  tree,  with  low  heavy  limbs,  in  which  he 
was  told  the  Indians  sought  a perch  from  which  they 
could'  easily  kill  deer  and  other  game  (with  their  bows 
and  arrows),  which  came  to  the  lick  for  salt. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


145 


Milton  Blocker  was  born  and  has  lived  all  his  life 
at  the  pretty  little  village  of  Olive  Branch,  Mississippi, 
some  seven  miles  southeast  of  the  salt  lick  referred  to, 
he  now  also  being  on  the  shady  side  of  seventy,  but 
very  active  and  alert  for  his  years.  His  father  and 
mother  settled  on  a large  estate  while  the  Indians  were 
still  in  Mississippi,  a part  of  which  he  now  owns.  He 
readily  recalls  hearing  his  mother,  who  lived  to  an  old 
age,  speak  of  the  salt  lick  referred  to,  and  its  great  value 
to  the  Indians,  in  drawing  to  it  the  abundant  game  of 
the  country  from  far  and  near. 

As  showing  the  uses  to  which  the  Indians  put  these 
rare  salt  licks,  and  the  dangers  attendant  thereon,  I will 
here  insert  an  excerpt  from  Cushman  (pages  486,  487)  : 

“When  watching  at  a deer  lick  at  night  by  the 
light  of  the  full-orbed  moon,  in  which  the  writer 
has  indulged  years  ago  in  the  Mississippi  forests 
then  untouched  by  the  ax,  the  hunter  found  as  his 
rival  in  the  same  sport,  the  panther  or  the  cata- 
mount, sometimes  both ; and  whose  presence  was 
made  known  by  the  moving  shadow  cast  upon  the 
ground  by  moonlight,  as  he  was  preparing  to  leap 
from  his  perch  upon  a deer  that  had,  unconscious 
of  danger,  walked  into  the  lick.  An  incident  of 
this  kind  happened  to  a hunter  in  Oktibbihaw  Coun- 
ty, Mississippi,  shortly  after  the  exodus  of  the 
Choctaws.  He  had  found  a deer  lick  in  Catarpo 
(corruption  of  the  Choctaw  word  Katapah,  stop- 
ped ; referring  to  the  obstructions  in  the  creek  by 
drifts)  swamps,  which  was  much  frequented  by  the 
deer.  He  built  a scaffold  fifteen  or  twenty  feet 
high  on  the  edge  of  a lick,  and  on  a beautiful  night 
of  the  full  moon,  shortly  after  sundown,  took  his 
seat  thereon.  About  ten  o’clock  at  night  a deer 


146 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


noiselessly  entered  the  lick  a few  rods  distant  from 
his  place  of  concealment,  and  began  licking  the 
salty  earth;  he  was  just  in  the  act  of  shooting  it, 
when  his  attention  was  attracted  from  the  deer  to 
a moving  shadow  upon  the  ground  between  him  and 
the  deer ; he  at  once  looked  up  to  ascertain  who  his 
neighbor  was,  and  was  not  a little  surprised  to  see 
a huge  panther  standing  on  a projecting  limb  of  a 
tree,  that  reached  nearly  over  and  just  behind  him, 
and  preparing  to  spring  upon  the  unsuspecting  deer. 
He  thought  no  more  of  the  deer,  and  gave  his  un- 
divided attention  to  his  rival  who  had  unceremoni- 
ously and  clandestinely  taken  his  seat  a little  higher 
and  nearly  over  his  head,  without  so  much  as  say- 
ing ‘by  your  leave.’  Not  being  very  fastidious  just 
then,  he  quietly  yielded  the  right  of  precedence  to 
his  fellow  hunter  above,  in  all  things  pertaining  to 
the  deer  quietly  licking  the  salty  earth  below.  For 
several  minutes  he  gazed  upon  the  huge  beast  as 
it  maneuvered  upon  the  limb,  seemingly  doubtful 
as  to  making  a successful  spring.  Finally  the  pan- 
ther made  a tremendous  leap  from  the  limb,  pass- 
ing almost  directly  over  the  hunter’s  head,  and  lit 
directly  upon  the  deer’s  back.  The  bleating  of  the 
helpless  deer  momentarily  broke  the  stillness  of  the 
forest,  and  then  all  was  hushed.  The  panther  pulled 
his  victim  to  the  outer  edge  of  the  lick,  stood  a 
moment  and  then  with  mighty  bounds  disappeared 
in  the  surrounding  forests.  During  all  this  the  hunt- 
er sat  quietly  upon  his  perch  cogitating  over  the 
novel  scene.  But  his  reveries  were  suddenly  inter- 
rupted by  a wild  and  terrible  yell,  seemingly  half 
human  and  half  beast,  fearful  enough  to  awaken 
all  the  denizens  of  the  forest  for  miles  away;  then 
came  an  immediate  response  from  a distant  point 
in  the  swamp.  That  was  enough  to  bring  the  hunt- 
er’s cogitations  to  a fixed  determination,  which 
was  clearly  manifested  by  the  agility  displayed  in 
descending  the  scaffold,  and  the  schedule  time  on 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


147 


which  he  ran  towards  home,  leaving-  the  two  pan- 
thers to  enjoy  their  unenvied  supper  of  venison  in 
their  native  woods  undisturbed.  Often  the  hunt- 
er found  the  panther  had  preceded  him  at  the  deer 
licks;  in  all  such  cases,  having  previously  resolved 
never  to  dispute  precedency  with  any  gentleman 
of  that  family,  he  quietly  left  him  to  the  undis- 
puted possession  of  the  chance  of  venison  for  that 
night,  particularly.” 


As  might  well  be  supposed,  the  Chickasaw  Indians 
well  knew  and  appreciated  the  great  value  of  salt  licks ; 
and  in  the  treaty  by  which  they  ceded  their  possessions 
in  West  Tennessee,  they  especially  reserved  for  their  own 
use  and  the  emoluments  expected  therefrom,  a consider- 
able salt  lick  near  Paris,  Tennessee;  out  of  which  quite 
a scandal  grew  up  and  was  fully  aired  in  heated  debates 
in  Congress  between  the  most  eminent  congressmen  of 
that  day. 

It  was  charged  that  certain  politicians  of  high  and 
low  degree,  closely  connected  with  President  Jackson, 
had  taken  advantage  of  their  official  positions  to  exploit 
and  develop  these  salt  mines  for  their  own  account ; for 
salt  wells  were  sunk  there  and  considerable  salt  turned 
out  in  the  early  days,  but  not  sufficiently  abundant  to 
justify  continued  operations. 

In  Volume  9,  page  252  of  the  American  (Tennessee) 
Historical  Magazine,  under  date  of  July,  1904,  there 
is  a very  interesting  article  by  the  late  Governor  James 
D.  Porter,  giving  a good  account  of  this  salt  formation, 
and  the  heated  controversy  to  which  the  Chickasaw  treaty 
in  reference  thereto  gave  rise. 


148 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


No  one  can  doubt  that  at  some  former  prehistoric 
period  Indians  had  a permanent  home  near  Capleville; 
but  who  the  Indians  were,  or  when  they  lived  there  will 
probably  remain  a shrouded  mystery,  though  the  proba- 
bility is  they  were  Chickasaws. 

The  Location  of  Quizquiz — 

What  was  the  site  of  Quizquiz,  the  first  Indian 
village  taken  by  the  De  Soto  expedition,  just  before  the 
discovery  of  the  Mississippi  ? This  has  to  me  been  an 
interesting  question,  and  I will  now  state  my  conclu- 
sions in  reference  thereto. 

It  will  aid  the  reader  to  turn  back  to  the  fifth  chap- 
ter in  which  appears  verbatim  the  accounts  given  by  the 
three  narratives  which  have  received  the  commendation 
of  Professor  Lewis  and  Dr.  Rowland.  No  two  of  them 
agree  as  to  the  details,  nor  does  the  narrative  of  Gar- 
cilaso  agree  in  its  details  with  the  other  three. 

This  is  not  surprising  for  obvious  reasons. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  main,  or  determinative,  facts 
can  be  grasped  from  a consideration  of  the  three  narra- 
tives, taken  together  and  construed  as  one  whole. 

From  these  it  appears  that  the  approach  to  the  river 
was  quite  gradual ; and  that  the  expedition  first  came  to 
a village  called  Quizquiz,  then  to  another  not  named, 
and  then  to  a third,  where  “they  saw  the  great  river;” 
that  is,  the  Mississippi.  Rodrigo  Ranjel  is  much  com- 
mended for  his  accuracy  of  statements,  and  as  he  more 
succinctly  and  clearly  states  the  details  connected  with 
the  discovery  of  the  river  it  is  here  repeated  for  conven- 


ience : 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


149 


“Saturday,  the  last  of  April,  the  army  set  out 
from  the  place  of  the  barricade  and  marched  nine 
days  through  a deserted  country,  and  by  a rough 
way,  mountainous  and  swampy,  until  May  8,  when 
they  came  to  the  first  village  of  Quizqui,  which  they 
took  by  assault  and  captured  much  people  and 
clothes;  but  the  governor  promptly  restored  them 
to  liberty  and  had  everything  restored  to  them  for 
fear  of  war,  although  that  was  not  enough  to  make 
friends  of  these  Indians.  A league  beyond  this  vil- 
lage they  came  upon  another  with  abundance  of 
corn,  and  soon  again  after  another  league,  upon 
another,  likewise  amply  provisioned.  There  they 
saw  the  great  river.” 

How  near  the  last  village  was  to  the  river  is  not 
stated ; but  presumptively  it  was  not  far. 

It  appears  quite  certain  that  Quizquiz  was  at  least 
two  leagues  from  the  river;  and  while  we  understand 
that  a league  is  considered  in  this  country  to  be  three 
English  miles,  the  real  inquiry  is  what  was  the  length  of 
a Spanish  league;  for  presumably  the  narrators  had  ref- 
erence to  the  Spanish  league. 

The  Century  dictionary  gives  the  Spanish  league  as 
4.214  miles,  and  the  Spanish  judicial  league  as  being 
2.634  miles  long.  Which  kind  of  the  two  Spanish 
leagues  the  narrators  had  in  mind  we  have  no  means  to 
determine;  but  I think  we  may  safely  assume  that  the 
two  leagues  which  lay  between  Quizquiz  and  the  river 
covered  a space  of  from  six  to  eight  miles ; and  follow- 
ing the  ancient  Chickasaw  trace,  which  is  now  the  Pigeon 
Roost  Road,  Quizquiz  was  somewhere  not  far  from 
Brown’s  Hill,  named  for  Dr.  Robert  Frierson  Brown,  a 


150 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


pioneer  land  owner  in  that  vicinity,  and  an  eminent  phy- 
sician. 

From  Brown’s  Hill  on  to  the  old  Bethel  place,  about 
or  a little  over  a mile,  there  is  an  unusually  level  expanse 
of  country,  with  barely  enough  inclination  to  drain  the 
waters  falling  thereon ; no  doubt  its  beauty  attracted  the 
attention  of  P.  C.  Bethel,  a man  of  great  wealth,  and 
who  built  a palatial  residence  there  before  the  Civil 
War,  and  though  for  over  a generation  it  has  been  sadly 
neglected,  it  still  rears  its  lofty  roof  towards  the  sky. 

As  usual,  Biedma  is  very  laconic,  saying  that  “the 
town  (Quizquiz)  was  near  the  banks  of  the  River  Es- 
piritu  Santo;”  that  is  the  river  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  the 
name  given  it  by  De  Soto. 

It  is  manifest  that  the  word  near,  as  used  here,  has 
no  definite  significance ; but  under  the  surrounding  cir- 
cumstances I think  it  may  safely  be  said  that  at  a dis- 
tance of  from  six  to  eight  miles,  the  town  may  have 
been  very  properly  described  as  being  near  the  great 
river.  The  Gentleman  of  Elvas,  after  mentioning  the 
capture  of  Quizquiz,  and  the  negotiations  and  circum- 
stances attendant  thereon,  only  mentions  one  and  not 
two  towns  visited  before  reaching  the  Mississippi,  but 
there  is  no  real  conflict  here  between  he  and  Ranjel  for 
the  supposition  is  that  he  omitted  to  mention  the  other 
town,  either  by  inadvertence  or  because  it  was  deemed 
an  unnecessary  detail.  He  does  say,  however,  “there 
was  little  maize  in  the  place,  and  the  governor  moved 
to  another  town,  half  a league  from  the  great  river 
(meaning  the  Mississippi)  where  it  was  found  in  suffi- 
ciency.” 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


151 


This  was  doubtless  the  third  village  mentioned  by 
Ran j el,  who  did  not  state  its  distance  from  the  river. 
It  would  seem  therefore,  that  Quizquiz  was  approxi- 
mately two  and  one-half  leagues  from  the  Mississippi. 

De  Soto’s  Camp  Near  a River  Bank — 

There  are  some  other  details  which  dovetail  into  our 
insistence  that  the  Mississippi  was  discovered  on  these 
bluffs,  to  which  no  reference  is  made  by  those  who  deny 
the  correctness  of  our  conclusions. 

All  the  narratives  agree  that  the  Spaniards  came 
upon  the  Indians  suddenly,  and  Biedma  says  the  men 
were  away  from  the  village  working  in  the  maize  fields, 
and  we  know  that  at  that  time  of  the  year  the  young 
corn  must  have  been  well  advanced,  though  it  was  be- 
fore roasting  ears  were  ready  for  the  table.  However, 
in  the  various  villages  there  was  plenty  of  maize,  that  is 
old  corn,  both  for  the  little  army  as  well  as  all  the  horses 
of  De  Soto.  This  shows  a fruitful  country,  sufficient 
and  more  than  sufficient  to  supply  the  permanent  Indian 
villages;  in  fact  the  very  best  farming  lands  stretched 
out  in  many  directions  far  beyond  the  necessities  of  the 
Indians.  Why  should  we  not  expect  permanent  Indian 
villages  in  this  stretch  of  the  country  so'  perfectly  adapt- 
ed to  their  comfort  and  well  being? 

De  Soto  captured  all  the  women  in  Quizquiz,  num- 
bering, according  to  Biedma,  three  hundred,  and  among 
these  was  the  mother  of  the  Cacique ; and  De  Soto  held 
these  as  hostages,  sending  word  to  the  Chief  by  one  of 
the  captives  to  come  and  he  would  turn  his  mother  and 


152 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


the  captives  over  to  him,  but  the  wily  Indian  evidently 
scented  treachery,  and  declined  the  invitation. 

The  after  developments  are  not  stated  with  clear- 
ness as  to  time  or  the  exact  place;  nor  is  it  anywhere 
stated  what  place  De  Soto  pitched  camp  after  taking  into 
custody  all  the  people  in  Quizquiz.  The  Cacique  very 
properly  demanded  the  unconditional  release  of  the  cap- 
tives, to  which  De  Soto  finally  agreed,  because  his  men 
had  arrived,  weak  and  weary  for  the  want  of  maize,  and 
his  horses  were  also  lean.  How  long  these  negotiations 
were  pending  does  not  appear,  but  the  probability  is  they 
covered  at  least  one  or  two  whole  days.  After  stating 
these  negotiations,  Elvas  adds: 

“The  next  day,  while  he  was  hoping  to  see  the 
Chief,  many  Indians  came,  with  bows  and  arrows, 
to'  set  upon  the  Christians,  when  he  commanded  that 
all  the  armed  horsemen  should  be  mounted  and  in 
readiness.  Finding  them  prepared,  the  Indians 
stopped  at  the  distance  of  a crossbow-shot  from 
where  the  Governor  was,  near  a river  bank,  where, 
after  remaining  quietly  half  an  hour,  six  chiefs  ar- 
rived at  the  camp,”  etc. 

It  is  evident  that  De  Soto  had  drawn  up  his  cav- 
alry at  his  camp  near  a precipitous  bank,  in  order  to  pro- 
tect his  rear.  It  is  not  said  that  he  was  near  a river,  but 
“near  a river  bank,”  from  which  expression  I am  inclined 
to  the  opinion  that  De  Soto  had  pitched  his  camp  upon 
the  brow  of  Brown’s  hill,  or  in  that  vicinity,  where  the 
descent  from  the  high  to  the  low  ground  was  sufficiently 
abrupt  as  to  afford  protection  to  his  rear,  and  unques- 
tionably such  conditions  then  prevailed,  though  much 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


153 


changed  since  then  by  the  effacing  finger  of  the  white 
man,  of  time  and  the  elements. 

If  it  be  said  Nonconnah  is  not  a river,  then  my  am 
swer  is  that  it  all  depends  on  the  opinion  of  the  person 
writing  the  narrative  as  to  what  constitutes  a river. 
Usually  the  word  river  is  understood  to  mean  a con- 
siderable body  of  water  flowing  in  a channel  with  a 
certain  definite  course,  and  with  a perceptible  current 
throughout  the  year.  At  that  time  Nonconnah  unques- 
tionably came  up  to  this  definition  of  a river.  But  it  is 
well  known  that  in  arid  states  like  Southern  California 
and  Southern  Texas,  and  doubtless  in  the  arid  portions 
of  Spain,  many  streams  which  have  no  current  for 
months  at  a time  are  called  rivers. 

It  is  perfectly  possible  that  in  the  time  of  De  Soto, 
now  near  four  hundred  years  ago,  Nonconnah  may  have 
run  at  the  foot  of  Brown's  hill  for  the  precipitous  char- 
acter of  the  hill  or  bluff  indicates  that  anciently  the 
stream  washed  its  base,  and  such  streams  flowing  through 
alluvial  soil  often  change  their  courses. 

Today  Nonconnah  bottom  proper  is  one  mile  wide, 
and  going  south  after  emerging  from  the  bottom  proper 
there  is  a low  expanse  over  a mile  long  that  must  have 
abounded  in  pondy  places  and  thickets,  and  extremely 
bad  to  cross  in  the  days  of  De  Soto.  Evidently  Noncon- 
nah bottom  formed  to  some  extent  a natural  barrier  and 
protection  to  the  Indians  living  on  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs 
at  that  time,  from  incursions  coming  from  the  south. 
The  narratives  all  agree  that  there  were  no  natives  then 
living  in  the  country  traveled  over  by  the  expedition,  be- 


154 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


tween  Alibamo  and  Quizquiz,  because  of  a war  between 
the  Indians.  All  agree  that  when  the  expedition  ap- 
peared at  Quizquiz,  the  Indians  were  taken  by  great  sur- 
prise, the  men  being  at  work  in  the  maize  fields. 

If  De  Soto  came  over  the  short-cut  or  direct  trail, 
his  sudden  ascent  from  Nonconnah  bottoms  up  and  upon 
high  land,  subsequently  called  Brown’s  Hill,  with  the 
seizure  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  first  village  he 
reached,  very  naturally  took  the  Indians  by  complete  sur- 
prise. It  could  not  be  otherwise.  The  conditions  of  the 
surrounding  country  demonstrated  how  it  was  the  nat- 
ural result  for  the  Indians  to  be  taken  by  surprise;  thus 
dovetailing  into1  the  details  of  the  story  as  given  by  the 
three  narratives. 

If  I was  inclined  to  be  dogmatic,  I might  here  enter 
my  ipse  dixit,  but  I leave  that  course  for  others  more 
learned,  leaving  the  reader  to  draw  his  own  conclusions. 

While  I have  stated  my  opinion  as  to  the  locality  of 
De  Soto’s  first  camp  after  seizing  all  the  inhabitants  of 
Quizquiz,  I am  by  no  means  dogmatically  wedded  to  that 
opinion.  However,  there  are  certain  main  facts  which 
loom  up  so<  plainly  that  they  can  not  be  mistaken. 

( 1 ) De  Soto  suddenly  appeared  and  by  surprise 

seized  all  the  inhabitants  of  Quizquiz,  in- 
cluding the  mother  of  the  Cacique  or  Chief, 
and  this  carried  consternation  to  the  Indians 
and  called  for  a rescue. 

(2)  De  Soto  apprehending  an  attack  pitched  his 

camp  near  a river-bank,  and  drew  up  in 
battle  array  all  his  cavalry,  knowing  that 
their  appearance  usually  struck  terror  to  the 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


155 


savages,  who  knew  nothing  of  horses,  and 
both  men  and  horses  being  encased  in  armor, 
gave  them  the  appearance  of  supernatural 
monsters,  something  on  the  order  of  the 
fabled  centaurs  of  the  ancient  Greeks.  This 
array  had  the  desired  effect,  for  instead  of 
fighting,  the  Indians,  through  the  six  chiefs 
sent  to  De  Soto's  camp,  effected  a release 
of  all  their  people  and  agreed  to  supply  the 
Spaniards  with  provisions.  Thus  hostilities 
were  averted. 

(3)  After  all  this  had  transpired,  the  Gentleman 

of  Elvas  says : “There  was  little  maize  in 
the  place,  and  the  Governor  moved  to  an- 
other town,  half  a league  from  the  great 
river,  where  it  was  found  in  sufficiency.  He 
went  to  look  at  the  river,  and  saw  that  near 
it  there  was  much  timber  of  which  piraguas 
might  be  made,  and  a good  situation  in  which 
the  camp  might  be  placed.  He  directly 
moved,  built  houses,  and  settled  on  a plain  a 
crossbow-shot  from  the  water,  bringing  to- 
gether there  all  the  maize  of  the  towns  be- 
hind, that  at  once  they  might  go  to  work  and 
cut  down  trees  for  sawing  out  planks  to 
build  barges.” 

(4)  It  thus  clearly  appears  that  after  the  first  camp 

on  the  river  bank,  De  Soto  moved  to  another 
town  half  a league  from  his  previous  camp ; 
and  from  this  second  camp  he  went  and  for 
the  first  time  looked  upon  the  Mississippi,  af- 
ter which  he  pitched  his  third  or  last  camp 
within  bow-shot  of  the  water,  and  began 
building  boats  to  cross  the  river. 


That  De  Soto  pitched  his  first  camp  for  defensive 
purposes  “near  a river-bank,”  is  undoubtedly  true.  It 
is  equally  true  that  if  he  did  not  pitch  that  camp  at  or 


156 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


near  the  bluffs  in  the  vicinity  of  Brown’s  hill,  then  the 
river  banks  of  Wolf  River  were  both  sufficiently  high 
and  precipitous  to  furnish  protection  to  the  camp  and 
could  readily  be  reached  by  reconnoitering  cavalry  in  less* 
than  an  hour  from  Brown’s  Hill. 

It  thus  appears  that  there  is  not  a single  detail  in 
the  three  narratives,  that  is  not  accounted  for  and  in 
complete  accord  with  the  physical  appearances  or  topo- 
graphical features  of  the  country  at  the  fourth  Chicka- 
saw Bluff. 

Garcilaso  de  la  Vega,  the  Inca — 

It  will  be  noted  that  I have  referred  only  to  the  three 
narratives  upon  which  Professor  Lewis  and  Dr.  Row- 
land have  placed  the  seal  of  their  approval,  and  I might 
safely  leave  the  matter  here. 

The  learned  historians  knowing  full  well  that  if  the 
work  of  Garcilaso'  de  la  Vega  is  considered,  they  would 
not  have  the  pretense  of  a defense  for  their  Tunica 
theory,  affect  to  discredit  his  narrative  and  not  satis- 
fied with  this,  misquote  what  he  said  in  an  important  par- 
ticular. Both  from  inclination  and  in  justice  to  the  truth 
of  history  I propose  to  look  a little  more  deeply  into  the 
matter. 

If  it  be  said  that  this  is  wandering  somewhat  from 
a sketch  of  the  Chickasaws,  I answer  that  the  name  and 
fame  of  the  Chickasaws  is  wrapped  up  with  that  of  De 
Soto,  and  the  discovery  of  the  Great  river;  and  more- 
over that  I am  writing  this  as  much  for  my  own  diver- 
sion as  for  any  other  purpose;  supposing  that  it  will  be 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


157 


of  more  interest  to  my  immediate  family  and  personal 
friends  than  to  the  public  at  large. 

In  the  preface  to  his  book  Conquest  of  Florida , 
brought  out  in  1851,  Theodore  Irving  (the  nephew  of 
Washington  Irving)  said: 

“Garcilaso  de  la  Vega  was  a man  of  rank  and 
honor.  He  was  descended  from  an  ancient  Span- 
ish stock  by  the  father’s  side,  while  by  the  mother’s, 
he  was  of  the  lofty  Peruvian  line  of  the  Incas.  His 
narrative  was  originally  taken  down  by  himself, 
from  the  lips  of  a friend;  a cavalier  of  worth  and 
respectability,  who  had  been  an  officer  under  De 
Soto,  and  for  whose  probity  we  have  the  word  of 
the  Inca  as  a guarantee.  It  was  authenticated  and 
enriched  by  the  written  journals  or  memorandums 
of  two  soldiers,  who  had  served  in  the  expedition. 
He  had  the  testimony,  therefore,  of  three  eye-wit- 
nesses. The  Portuguese  narrative,  on  the  other 
hand,  is  the  evidence  of  merely  a single  eye-witness, 
who  gives  himself  out  as  a cavalier,  or  gentleman; 
but  for  this  we  have  merely  his  own  word,  and  he 
is  anonymous.  There  is  nothing  intrinsic  in  his 
work  that  should  entitle  it  to  the  exclusive  belief 
that  has  been  claimed  for  it.  It  agrees  with  the 
narrative  of  the  Inca,  as  to  the  leading  facts  which 
form  the  framework  of  the  story ; it  differs  from 
it  occasionally,  as  to-  the  plans  and  views  of  Her- 
nando’  de  Soto  ; but  here  the  Inca  is  most  to  be 
depended  upon — the  Spanish  cavalier  from  whom 
he  derived  his  principal  information  being  more 
likely  to  be  admitted  to  the  intimate  councils  of  his 
commander  than  one  of  a different  nation,  and  being 
free  from  the  tinge  of  national  jealousy  which  may 
have  influenced  the  statements  of  the  Portuguese. 

The  narrative  of  the  Portuguese  is  more  meagre 
and  concise  than  that  of  Garcilaso  ; omitting  a thou- 
sand interesting  anecdotes  and  personal  adventures; 


158 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


but  this  does  not  increase  its  credibility.  A multi- 
tude of  facts,  gathered  and  gleaned  from  three  dif- 
ferent persons,  may  easily  have  escaped  the  knowl- 
edge, or  failed  to  excite  the  attention  of  a solitary 
individual.  These  anecdotes  are  not  the  less  cred- 
ible because  they  were  striking  and  extraordinary; 
the  whole  expedition  was  daring  and  extravagant, 
and  those  concerned  in  it  men  who  delighted  in  ad- 
venture and  exploit.” 

It  may  be  added  that  the  authors  of  the  three  nar- 
ratives referred  to  are  wholly  unknown,  except  through 
their  respective  narratives;  while  Garcilaso  was  one  of 
the  most  distinguished  authors  of  his  age,  dying  in  1616, 
the  same  year  Shakespeare  died  in  England,  and  his 
countryman,  Cervantes,  the  author  of  Don  Quixote,  died 
in  Spain ; Garcilaso  being  a worthy  contemporary  of 
those  two  immortals  in  the  literature  of  the  world. 

His  history  of  Peru  is  declared  by  a competent  au- 
thority to  be  “A  source  from  which  all  subsequent  writers 
on  the  subject  have  largely  drawn,  and  still  continues  to 
be  one  of  the  chief  authorities  on  ancient  Peru.” 

While  he  is  chiefly  remembered  through  this  his- 
tory, he  was  the  author  of  other  books  which  passed 
through  various  editions,  some  being  translated  into 
French  and  English;  and  as  late  as  1800,  or  nearly  200 
years  after  his  death,  an  edition  of  his  works,  in  seventeen 
volumes,  was  brought  out  in  Madrid. 

He  was  admired  by  his  countrymen  as  a man  of 
piety,  virtue,  modesty  and  of  devotion  to  letters,  and 
held  in  the  highest  esteem  as  a historian.  He  was  buried 
in  the  Cathedral  of  Cordova  in  one  of  the  Chapels  called 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


159 


Garcilaso  in  his  honor;  where  monumental  inscriptions 
on  each  side  of  the  altar  record  his  valor  (for  he  was  at 
one  time  a gallant  soldier),  his  virtues  and  his  literary 
merits. 

And  this  is  the  author  whose  narrative  is  rejected, 
admittedly  superior  to  all  the  others  in  literary  style,  and 
the  most  famous;  its  rejection  being  upon  the  charge  that 
it  is  spurious ; that  this  good  and  distinguished  man,  with- 
out any  motive  therefor,  palmed  off  a gigantic  literary 
fraud  upon  the  world! 


Garcilaso  realized  that  absolute  accuracy  in  all  its 
details  was  impossible  under  the  circumstances,  and  Irv- 
ing quotes  him  as  saying: 

“I  cannot  hold  myself  responsible  for  the  ac- 
curacy of  the  distances  I give,  for,  although  I have 
spared  no  exertions,  and  have  used  all  the  diligence 
to  arrive  at  the  truth,  yet  I have  been  unavoidably 
compelled  to  leave  much  to  conjecture.  The  Span- 
iards had  no  instruments  with  them  by  which  they 
could  compute  distances;  their  main  object  was  to 
conquer  the  country,  and  seek  for  silver  and  gold; 
consequently,  they  gave  themselves  little  trouble  to 
note  the  route.” 

Nor  is  it  a strange  thing  that  Garcilaso  should  “have 
set  down,”  as  it  was  then  phrased,  the  story  of  the  three 
members  of  the  De  Soto  expedition,  when  we  recall  the 
almost  universal  illiteracy  of  the  times,  as  well  as  the 
custom  for  a man  of  some  literary  attainments,  to  write 
the  adventures  of  those  who  were  unable  to  perform  that 
service  for  themselves.  There  was  then  as  there  are  now 


160 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


in  illiterate  countries,  many  professional  letter-writers, 
all  of  which  is  very  natural  when  we  recall  the  conditions 
which  led  to  such  customs,  long  since  without  any  ex- 
istence in  highly  developed  countries. 

It  was  also  a strange  custom  also  of  those  times  for 
authors  to  withhold  their  identity ; as  witness  the  fact  that 
no  one  to  this  day  knows  who  was  the  author  of  the 
narrative  of  “The  Gentleman  of  Elvas”;  on  account  of 
which  some  say  it  should  be  rejected ; but  when  we  con- 
sider the  customs  of  those  days,  as  well  as  the  internal 
evidence  in  the  narrative,  its  rejection  would  be  an  act  of 
folly. 

I will  now  reproduce  the  narrative  of  Garcilaso  as 
appears  in  Young’s  History  of  Memphis,  beginning  on 
page  22,  where  we  read  that  the  account  there  appearing 
is  from  the  French,  contained  in  Richlet’s  version  of 
Garcilaso,  brought  out  in  1731.  Robert  B.  Goodwin,  a 
very  accurate  and  scholarly  member  of  the  Memphis  bar, 
made  the  translation  for  Judge  Young,  and  kindly  looked 
over  and  confirmed  his  translation  at  my  request;  and 
I have  every  reason  to  believe  it  is  entirely  correct,  and 
it  is  here  given. 

The  Account  of  Garcilaso  de  la  Vega — 

“The  Spaniards  in  leaving  AlibamO',  marched 
across  a waste  country  bearing  always  towards  the 
north  in  order  to  get  further  and  further  away  from 
the  sea,  and  at  the  end  of  three  days  they  came  in 
view  of  the  capital  of  Chisca,  which  bears  the  name 
of  its  province  and  of  its  ruler.  This  town  is  situa- 
ted near  a river  which  the  Indians  called  Chucagua, 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


161 


the  largest  of  all  those  encountered  by  our  people 
in  Florida.  The  inhabitants  of  Chisca,  unaware  of 
the  coming  of  the  troops,  by  reason  of  the  war  which 
they  were  waging  with  their  neighbors,  were  taken 
by  surprise.  The  Spaniards  plundered  them  and 
took  several  of  them  prisoners.  The  rest  of  them 
fled,  some  into  a forest  between  the  village  and  the 
river,  and  others  to  the  house  of  the  Cacique,  which 
stood  upon  a high  mound  commanding  a view  of 
the  whole  place.  The  Cacique  was  old,  and  then 
sick  upon  his  bed,  in  a condition  of  great  weakness. 
He  was  of  such  small  stature  and  of  such  meagre 
visage  that  in  that  country  the  like  had  never  been 
seen.  Nevertheless  at  the  sound  of  the  alarm  and 
being  surprised  that  his  subjects  were  being  plun- 
dered and  being  taken  prisoners,  he,  arose,  walked 
out  of  his  chamber  with  a battle  axe  in  his  hand  and 
made  the  threat  that  he  would  slay  all  who  might 
enter  his  lands  without  his  leave.  But  as  he  was 
about  to  go  forth  from  his  house  to  confront  the 
Spaniards,  the  women  of  his  household,  aided  by 
some  of  his  subjects  who  had  made  their  escape 
from  the  Spaniards,  restrained  him.  With  tears  in 
their  eyes  they  reminded  him  of  the  fact  that  he  was 
feeble,  without  men  at  arms,  his  vassals  in  dis- 
order, and  not  in  condition  for  fighting  and  that 
those  with  whom  he  had  to  do  were  vigorous,  well 
disciplined,  great  in  number  and,  for  the  most  part, 
mounted  upon  beasts  of  such  speed  that  none  could 
ever  escape  them. 

That  it  was  necessary  then,  to  wait  a favorable 
occasion  for  their  revenge  and  to  deceive  their  ene- 
mies in  the  meantime  by  fair  appearances  of  friend- 
ship, thus  preventing  the  destruction  of  himself  and 
his  subjects. 

“These  considerations  caused  Chisca  to  pause, 
but  he  was  so  chagrined  by  the  injury  which  the 
Spaniards  had  done  him,  that  instead  of  being 
willing  to  listen  to  the  envoys  of  the  general  in  their 


162 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


demands  for  peace,  he  declared  war  upon  them,  add- 
ing that  he  hoped  within  a short  while  to  cut  the 
throat  of  their  captain  and  all  those  with  him. 

"De  Soto,  however,  was  not  astonished  at  this, 
but  sent  others  and  they  made  excuses  for  the  dis- 
order created  upon  their  arrival,  and  repeated  the 
demand  for  peace. 

“For  it  was  clear  to  De  Soto  that  his  men  were 
discouraged  on  account  of  the  constant  skirmishing, 
and  were  encumbered  with  sick  men  and  sick  horses ; 
that  in  less  than  six  hours  there  had  come  to  the 
side  of  the  Cacique  not  less  than  four  thousand  men, 
quite  well  equipped ; that  in  all  probability  he  would 
get  together  a very  much  larger  number;  besides, 
that  the  lay  of  the  land  was  very  favorable  to  the 
Indians , and  very  unfavorable  to  the  Spaniards,  on 
account  of  the  thicket  surrounding  the  town,  which 
would  make  it  impossible  to  use  liis  cavalry;  that 
finally,  instead  of  making  progress  by  fighting,  the 
Spaniards  were  working  their  own  destruction  from 
day  to  day.  These  were  the  considerations  which  in- 
duced the  general  to  offer  peace. 

“But  the  larger  part  of  the  Indians  who  were 
assembled  to  deliberate  upon  the  subject  had  quite 
contrary  views.  Some  were  for  war,  believing  that 
to  be  the  only  means  of  recovering  their  goods  and 
delivering  their  companions  from  the  power  of  the 
Spaniards.  They  declared  that  there  need  be  no 
fear  of  such  people ; that  such  earnest  demands  for 
peace  as  the  Spaniards  made  afforded  certain  proof 
of  their  cowardice : finally,  that  it  was  fitting  to  ap- 
prise them  of  the  courage  of  those  whom  they  had 
just  attacked  by  giving  battle  in  turn,  to  the  end 
that  no  stranger  in  future  would  have  the  temerity 
to  enter  their  domain.  But  the  other  side  contend- 
ed that  peace  was  their  only  means  of  getting  back 
their  property  and  their  imprisoned  countrymen ; 
that  if  there  should  be  a battle  their  misery  would 
only  be  increased  by  reason  of  fire  and  the  loss 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


163 


of  their  crops  (which  were  still  unharvested),  re- 
sulting in  ruin  to  the  entire  province  and  the  death 
of  many  of  their  people. 

‘‘For  they  said  inasmuch  as  their  enemies  had 
come  as  far  as  their  country,  through  so  many 
trials  and  perils  and  through  so  many  fierce  tribes, 
their  courage  could  not  be  fairly  doubted. 

“Thus  they  said  without  any  other  proofs, 
peace  ought  to  be  made,  and  that  if  they  were  after- 
wards dissatisfied  they  could  break  the  truce  to  a 
much  better  advantage  than  they  could  on  that  day 
make  war.  This  opinion  prevailed  and  the  Cacique, 
dissembling  his  resentment,  asked  the  envoys  what 
they  thought  to  gain  by  peace,  which  they  seemed 
to  desire  so  much.  They  answered,  their  lodging 
in  the  town,  together  with  supplies  for  passing  on. 
Chisca  agreed  to  all  on  condition  that  they  should 
set  at  liberty  those  of  his  subjects  whom  the  Span- 
iard held  prisoners,  return  all  the  goods  that  they 
had  seized,  and  not  enter  into  his  house;  and  he 
warned  them  that  the  only  alternative  would  be  war 
of  extermination. 

“The  Spaniards  accepted  peace  on  these  con- 
ditions and  released  the  subjects  of  Chisca,  for  they 
had  no  lack  of  Indian  servants,  and  returned  all  the 
booty — consisting  only  of  some  sorry  deerskins  and 
clothing  of  small  value.  Thereupon  the  inhabitants 
abandoned  the  town  with  the  supplies  which  they 
had  and  the  Spaniards  remained  six  days,  treating 
their  sick.  On  the  last  day  De  Soto  got  leave  from 
Chisca  to  visit  him  in  his  house,  and  after  he  had 
thanked  him  for  the  favor  done  his  troops  he  with- 
drew, proceeding  the  next  day  upon  his  journey  of 
discovery.” 

The  italics  are  mine,  and  designed  primarily  to  call 
attention  to  two  matters  which  attest  manifest  errors  on 
the  part  of  the  learned  historians  in  question. 


164 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


(1)  It  will  be  recalled  that  Professor  Lewis  stated 
that  after  the  expedition  left  the  Chickasaw  Country,  it 
turned  west,  not  only  without  any  support  in  any  narra- 
tive therefor,  but  in  direct  contradiction  to  Biedma,  who 
says  it  went  to  the  northwest.  And  now  we  see  that  Gar- 
cilaso  states  the  course  as  “bearing  always  towards  the 
north  (not  due  north),  in  order  to  get  further  and  fur- 
ther away  from  the  sea.” 

(2)  It  will  be  recalled  also  that  the  professor  quotes 
Garcilaso  as  saying  that  De  Soto  could  not  use  his  cav- 
alry “because  of  the  many  streams  around  there  they 
could  not  use  their  horses” ; whereas  we  now  see  that 
what  he  really  said  was : 

“Besides,  that  the  lay  of  the  land  was  very 
favorable  to  the  Indians,  and  very  unfavorable  to 
the  Spaniards,  on  account  of  the  thicket  surround- 
ing the  town,  which  would  make  it  impossible  to 
use  his  cavalry.” 


As  no  one  visited  the  Mississippi  River  after  the  De 
Soto  expedition,  for  a period  of  142  years,  how  else  was 
it  possible  for  Garcilaso  to  obtain  the  information  that  a 
mound  was  located  on  the  Mississippi  where  its  discov- 
ery was  made,  except  through  members  of  that  expedi- 
tion? To  assume  that  his  narrative  was  a fiction,  neces- 
sarily concedes  also,  that  the  author  had  more  than  a 
prophetic  vision,  or  a prescience  unknown  to  the  children 
of  men. 

It  is  not  strange,  therefore,  that  the  ablest  historians 
and  the  public  at  large  have  long  since  accepted  the  fourth 
Chickasaw  Bluff  as  the  point  of  the  discovery  of  the 
great  Mississippi  River. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


165 


De  Soto  at  the  Mississippi — 

“High  on  a bluff  they  stood;  anear  its  base 
The  Mississippi  rolled  its  mighty  flood. 

The  lordly  river,  half  a league  in  breadth, 

And  flowing  gently,  parted  in  two  streams 
Around  a verdant  island  to  the  south. 

Titanic  in  his  grandeur,  yet  serene 
And  placid  with  a godlike  majesty, 

The  King  of  Rivers  to  the  Christians’  hearts 
Brought  admiration,  awe  and  reverence. 

De  Soto  viewed  with  fascinated  eyes 

The  scene  before  him.  Into  his  troubled  soul 

There  came,  he  knew  not  why,  a holy  calm ; 

A deep  yet  tranquil  joy  surged  through  his  heart, 

As  with  a great  thanksgiving  hymn  to  God. 

Faint  in  his  ears,  a whisper  from  afar 
Assured  him  that  this  river  with  his  name 
Would  be  entwined  forever;  that  this  stream, 

More  stately  than  the  Danube  or  the  Nile, 

Would  be  the  artery,  in  a distant  age, 

To  some  illustrious  empire,  more  august 
Than  that  which  centered  on  the  Tiber’s  shore. 

Here  would  be  giant  cities,  splendid  halls, 

The  homes  of  Commerce,  Learning,  Wealth  and  Power. 
Here  Art  and  Science  would  be  honored ; here 
Would  be  the  haunts  of  Story  and  of  Song, — 
Renowned  in  lays  of  poets  yet  to  be, — 

Surpassing  in  romantic  legendry 

The  dome-crowned  Arno  or  the  vine-clad  Rhine. 

He  called  it  The  River  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

Long  after  all  his  men  had  sought  the  camp, 

Intent  on  little  tasks  that  closed  their  day, 

De  Soto,  silent,  mused  upon  the  banks 


166 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Of  the  Great  River,  that,  with  sacrifice 
Of  toils  and  tears,  his  prowess  now  had  won. 
Recumbent  in  a dim,  secluded  spot, 

As  in  a sanctuary,  he  was  lulled 
Into  benign  repose.  Far  to  the  west, 

The  setting  sun  in  benediction  hung, 

And  burnished  heaving  waves  with  melted  gold; 
Above  the  vast,  deep  western  wilderness 
He  paused,  then  sank,  and  left  the  quiet  world 
To  rest,  to  meditation  and  to  sleep. 

The  brilliant  gold  of  sunset  deepened  slow 
To  orange;  then  the  fragile  floating  clouds 
Took  chastened  tints  of  faded  rose  and  pearl. 

The  chirp  of  crickets  beat  with  drowsy  notes ; 

The  cadence  of  cicadas,  like  a dirge, 

Sighed  through  the  unillumined  forest  gloom ; 

The  requiems  of  lone  thrushes  pined  and  yearned 
At  rustic  altars  of  umbrageous  woods, — 

Soft  evensongs  at  gentle  evenfall 
For  euthanasia  of  departing  day. 

Through  haunts  sequestered  and  forsaken  stole 
The  sundown  shadows ; from  its  rich  maroon 
To  ashen  twilight  waned  the  afterglow. 

Soon  melancholy  purple  dimmed  the  skies, 

And  through  the  vesper  gloaming,  tremulous, 

The  fair-faced,  timid  stars  came  one  by  one. 

The  gray-winged  gulls  wheeled  slowly,  homeward- 
bound. 

Then  solemn  Nightfall,  like  a Sibyl,  came, 

And  in  one  great  libation,  from  her  urn 
Outgushed  the  darkness  over  earth  and  heaven ; 

But  still  De  Soto  mused  beside  the  stream, 

Immovable — in  silence, — lost  in  thought.” 

Walter  Malone, 

In  Hernando  De  Soto. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


167 


De  Soto  Crosses  the  Mississippi — 

It  will  be  recalled  that  in  the  fifth  chapter  I referred 
to  the  fact  that  after  Professor  Lewis  had,  in  his  im- 
agination, landed  De  Soto  in  the  swamps  of  Arkansas, 
opposite  some  imaginary  point  in  Tunica  County,  Mis- 
sissippi, he  suggested  that  some  prehistoric  earthquake 
may  have  changed  the  face  of  the  earth  in  that  vicinity. 

This  suggestion  was  the  offspring  of  necessity,  for 
it  evidences  the  fact  that  the  Professor  must  have  real- 
ized all  too  well,  that  there  was  not  a single  physical 
feature  of  that  country  which  would  dovetail  with  any 
one  of  the  three  narratives  to  which  he  gives  his  alle- 
giance. Hence  an  appeal  to  some  supposed  or  imaginary 
cataclysm  in  nature  to  supply  the  want  of  solid  facts;  an 
appeal  which  makes  it  difficult  to  suppress  a smile  of 
incredulity. 

But,  however  this  may  be,  one  who  merely  searches 
for  the  real  place  at  which  the  Mississippi  was  discovered 
by  De  Soto,  has  no  need  to  appeal  to  the  miraculous, 
when  he  reads  the  three  narratives  of  those  who  are  ac- 
claimed as  credible  witnesses,  to  see  and  understand  that 
the  discovery  was  made  where  Memphis  is  now  en- 
throned. What  are  the  undisputed  facts? 

We  have  seen  that  the  eastern  shores  of  the  river 
where  the  discovery  was  made,  sustained  a teeming  popu- 
lation of  aborigines,  and  that  the  physical  features  of  the 
Chickasaw  Bluffs,  with  its  splendid  hinterland,  afforded 
almost  an  early  paradise  or  happy  hunting  grounds  for 
the  Red  children  of  the  forest.  And,  so  likewise,  the 
opposite  or  western  shores  of  the  Mississippi  supported 


168 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


an  equally  large  aboriginal  population,  and  we  have  only 
to  consider  the  physical  features  of  the  western  hinter- 
land to  observe  how  well  it  fits  in  with  the  three  narra- 
tives referred  to. 

Biedma  says  (p.  26)  : 

“On  the  other  shore  we  saw  numbers  of  people 
collected  to  oppose  our  landing,  who'  had  many 
canoes.  We  set  about  building  four  large  piraguas, 
each  capable  of  taking  sixty  or  seventy  men  and 
five  or  six  horses.  We  were  engaged  in  this  work 
twenty-seven  or  twenty-eight  days.  During  this 
time,  the  Indians  every  day,  at  three  o’clock  in  the 
afternoon  would  get  into  two  hundred  and  fifty 
very  large  canoes  they  had,  well  shielded,  and  came 
near  the  shores  on  which  we  were;  with  loud  cries 
they  would  exhaust  their  arrows  upon  us,  and  then 
return  to  the  other  bank.” 

Ranjel  (page  137)  estimated  the  number  of  In- 
dians on  the  opposite  shore  to  oppose  the  passage,  at 
seven  thousand,  and  that  all  of  them  had  shields  made  of 
canes  joined,  so  strong  and  closely  interwoven  with  such 
thread  that  a cross-bow  could  hardly  pierce  them. 

The  Gentleman  of  Elvas  says  (page  113)  that  the 
barge  in  which  the  Cacique  came  had  an  awning  at  the 
poop  under  which  he  sat ; and  there  from  under  the 
canopy  where  the  chief  man  was,  the  course  was  directed 
and  orders  issued  to  the  rest.  They  were  painted  with 
ochre,  wearing  great  bunches  of  white  and  other  plumes 
of  many  colors,  having  feathered  shields  in  their  hands, 
with  which  they  sheltered  the  oarsmen  on  either  side,  the 
warriors  standing  erect  from  bow  to  stern,  holding  bows 
and  arrows. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


169 


He  added  they  were  fine  looking  men,  very  large  and 
well  formed;  and  what  with  the  awnings,  the  plumes 
and  the  shields,  the  pennons  and  the  number  of  the  peo- 
ple in  the  fleet,  it  appeared  like  a famous  Armada  of 
galleys. 


The  Country  Opposite  Memphis  Dovetails 
With  the  Narratives — 

With  such  a large  population  and  splendid  types  of 
Indians  inhabiting  the  western  shores  of  the  river  where 
De  Soto  crossed,  what  should  we  expect  but  a fine  coun- 
try fit  to  produce  and  maintain  such  a people?  Such 
was  the  country  then  and  now,  opposite  the  fourth  Chick- 
asaw Bluffs. 

It  is  a well  known  topographical  feature  of  this 
section  of  the  delta  that  there  was  an  almost  continuous 
ridge  of  high  land,  commencing  from  about  where 
Mound  City  now  is,  and  running  in  a westward  direc- 
tion to  Crowley’s  Ridge,  the  high  ground  about  forty 
miles  from  Memphis ; that  is,  the  delta  is  about  forty 
miles  wide,  opposite  Memphis,  and  this  high  ground  an 
almost  continuous  way  across  the  Mississippi  delta,  with 
some  occasional  breaks  therein. 

Of  course,  there  were  breaks  in  the  ridge,  and  there 
were  occasional  lakes,  bayous  and  some  rivers  to  cross, 
but  there  was  sufficiently  continuous  high  ground  or 
ridges  as  to  make  it  of  great  importance  to  all  who 
wished  to  cross  the  delta,  and  this  was  such  a marked 
feature  of  the  country  that  the  United  States  made  it 


170 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


available  before  the  day  of  railroads,  for  the  construc- 
tion of  a military  road  over  which  to  transport  troops. 

Taking  advantage  of  this  feature  of  the  country,  the 
United  States  Government  long  before  the  Civil  War, 
constructed  a military  road  from  the  vicinity  of  Mound 
City,  Arkansas,  across  the  bottoms  to  Little  Rock,  Ar- 
kansas. As  the  name  implies,  there  were  Indian  mounds 
at  the  site  of  that  ancient  village,  and  the  mounds  gave 
the  place  its  name,  and  they  are  there  today,  silent  wit- 
nesses to  the  fact  that  De  Soto  crossed  the  Mississippi 
where  Memphis  now  is. 

When  the  Chickasaw  Indians  were  moved  across 
the  river  in  the  thirties,  thousands  of  them  were  fer- 
ried from  Memphis  to  Mound  City,  under  the  supervis- 
ion of  Marcus  B.  Winchester,  who  had  been  the  first 
mayor  of  Memphis. 

There  they  commenced  to  cross  the  delta  on  their 
long  journey  to  their  new  home,  then  in  the  far  West. 
There  was  a considerable  section  around  Mound  City 
that  was  not  subject  to  overflow,  and  in  the  early 
days  there  was  a settlement  and  village  there,  for  it 
was  then  a rival  of  Memphis  for  the  supremacy  of  the 
valley.  The  Spaniards  fully  appreciated  and  well  un- 
derstood the  value  of  such  high  land,  and  located  grants 
around  Mound  City  when  they  were  the  overlords  of 
the  country.  It  is  also  interesting  to  recall  that  only 
twelve  to  fifteen  miles  north  from  Mound  City  the  traveler 
anciently  and  now  may  view  the  beautiful  and  well 
known  Wappanocca  Lake,  famous  for  its  unrivaled  fish- 
eries, and  myriads  of  duck  and  waterfowls  of  all  kinds. 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


171 


It  has  an  outlet  leading  to  the  river,  called  Wappa- 
nocca  Bayou,  while  another  outlet  leads  to  the  Tyronza 
River.  These  bayous  of  the  delta  bear  a great  resem- 
blance to  canals,  and  these  bayous  are  doubtless  what 
the  De  Soto  narratives  called  canals  leading  to  the  river 
from  certain  lakes.  Indeed,  some  writers  have  insisted 
that  these  bayous  were  in  fact  canals  constructed  by 
some  prehistoric  people  for  the  drainage  of  the  coun- 
try; and  I have  heard  men  learnedly  argue  to  this  effect, 
and  viewing  these  bayous  as  they  appeared  years  ago. 
I could  not  but  feel  the  force  of  their  arguments,  though 
I was  not  convinced  of  the  correctness  of  the  theory. 

A recent  map  of  Crittenden  County,  Arkansas,  be- 
fore me,  prepared  by  the  Rhodes  Abstract  Company, 
shows  the  country  adjacent  to  Wappanocca  Bayou  and 
Lake  plastered  over  with  old  Spanish  grants ; and  it  may 
be  added  that  the  ground  there  is  higher  and  the  Indian 
mounds  more  numerous  than  at  Mound  City. 

It  may  be  also  added,  that  as  you  go  north  from 
Crittenden  County  there  is  higher  ground,  and  that  Miss- 
issippi County,  lying  immediately  north  of  and  adjoin- 
ing Crittenden,  is  regarded  by  many  as  the  best  county 
in  the  delta,  owing  not  only  to  the  fertility  of  its  soil, 
but  to  its  rolling  and  well-drained  surface.  Such  is  the 
goodness  of  this  part  of  the  delta  that  Professor  Lewis, 
in  his  article,  finally  leads,  or  lands,  De  Soto  in  Miss- 
issippi County,  though  it  is  a thing  to  me  incredible 
that  he  could  have  floundered  his  way  so  far  north  from 
a point  somewhere  opposite  Tunica  County,  Mississippi. 


172 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


Anciently,  and  as  we  all  know  until  within  recent 
years,  in  its  approach  towards  the  Chickasaw  Bluffs, 
after  the  Mississippi  passed  Mound  City,  its  direction 
was  eastwardly,  and  that  opposite  the  northern  section 
of  the  Bluffs  it  turned  abruptly  southward  around  Hope- 
field  Point.  From  the  window  of  my  office  on  the  elev- 
enth floor  of  the  Cotton  Exchange  Building,  facing 
Court  Square,  I can  almost  see  the  location  of  old  Mound 
City.  For  many  years  the  river  has  been  gradually 
shifting  its  bed  eastward  at  and  beyond  Mound  City, 
and  within  the  last  two  or  three  years  it  has  cut  a new 
channel,  running  almost  south,  by  the  old  Hen  and 
Chicken  Islands,  just  north  of  Memphis,  and  leaving 
Mound  City  far  from  the  main  channel  of  the  river. 


With  these  unquestioned  topographical  features  of 
the  western  country  across  the  Mississippi  from  the 
Chickasaw  Bluffs  before  us,  can  any  reasonable  man 
doubt  that  De  Soto  was  ignorant  thereof,  or  failed  to 
acquaint  himself  with  the  lay  of  the  land,  when  igno- 
rance in  respect  thereto  might  lead  to  the  destruction  of 
every  man  in  the  expedition? 

What  do  the  narratives  disclose  as  to  the  route 
that  was  taken  and  the  character  of  the  country  beyond 
the  Mississippi  ? 

The  river  was  high,  bringing  down  many  trees  with 
its  currents,  the  Gentleman  of  Elvas  (page  115)  stating 
that  the  river  was  near  a half  league  unde;  adding  that  a 
man  standing  on  the  shore  could  not  be  told  whether 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


173 


he  was  a man  or  something  else,  from  the  other  side. 
The  stream  was  swift  and  very  deep,  always  flowing 
turbidly,  bringing  down  from  above  much  timber  driven 
by  the  force  of  the  current. 

Biedma  says  (page  26)  that  the  river  was  near  a 
league  wide,  and  nineteen  or  twenty  fathoms  deep. 

On  account  of  the  swiftness  of  the  current,  Elvas 
says  that  they  went  up  along  the  river  about  a quarter 
of  a league,  and  landed  about  opposite  the  camps,  and 
from  this  statement  I suppose  the  landing  place  was 
about  Hopefield  Point.  Having  located  De  Soto  on  the 
west  side  of  the  river,  how  far  did  he  have  to  travel  to 
reach  the  Indian  mounds,  now  the  location  of  Mound 
City? 

The  Gentleman  of  Elvas  (page  116)  says: 

“The  Rio  Grande  being  crossed,  the  governor 
marched  a league  and  a half,  to  a large  town  of 
Aquixo,  which  was  abandoned  before  his  arrival. 
Over  a plain  thirty  Indians  were  seen  to  draw  nigh, 
sent  bv  the  Cacique,  to  discover  what  the  Chris- 
tians intended  to  do,  but  who  tied  directly  as  they 
saw  them.  The  cavalry  pursued,  killed  ten  and 
captured  fifteen.  As  the  town  toward  which  the 
governor  marched  was  near  the  river,  he  sent  a 
captain,  with  the  force  he  thought  sufficient,  to  take 
the  piraguas  up  the  stream.  These,  as  they  fre- 
quently wound  about  through  the  country,  having 
to  go  round  the  bays  that  swell  out  the  river,  the 
Indians  had  opportunity  to  attack  those  in  the  pira- 
guas, placing  them  in  great  peril,  being  shot  at 
with  bows  from  the  ravines,  while  they  dared  not 
leave  the  shore,  because  of  the  swiftness  of  the  cur- 
rent; so  that,  as  soon  as  the  governor  got  to  the 
town,  he  directly  sent  cross-bow  men  to  them  down 


174 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


the  stream,  for  their  protection.  When  the  pira- 
guas arrived,  he  ordered  them  to  be  taken  to  pieces, 
and  the  spikes  kept  for  making  others,  when  they 
should  be  needed.” 

Anyone  familiar  with  the  country  will  unhesitat- 
ingly state  that  the  Indian  mounds,  adjacent  to  Mound 
City,  are  about  four  to  five  miles  from  Hopefield  Point, 
and  any  properly  scaled  map  will  show  the  same  dis- 
tance, and  thus  we  have  a verification  of  the  estimate 
made  by  Elvas  that  it  was  a league  and  a half  from 
the  landing  place  to  the  first  Indian  village  reached  in 
the  Province  of  Aquixo. 

Biedma  says  (pages  27,  28)  with  respect  to  customs 
of  the  Indians  across  the  river : 

“Arriving  there  as  it  is  the  custom  of  the 
Caciques  to  have  near  their  houses  a high  hill,  made 
by  hand,  some  having  houses  placed  thereon,  we 
set  up  the  cross  on  the  summit,  and  we  all  went  on 
bended  knees,  with  great  humility,  to  kiss  the  foot 
of  the  cross.  The  Indians  did  the  same  as  they 
saw  us  do,  nor  more  nor  less;  then  directly  they 
brought  a great  quantity  of  cane,  making  a fence 
about  it.  and  we  returned  that  night  to  our  camp.” 

From  the  context,  I think  this  took  place  in  Casqui. 

Who  can  doubt  that  the  first  village  reached  by  De 
Soto  across  the  river  in  the  province  of  Aquixo,  stood 
where  the  Indian  mounds  at  the  ancient  village  of  Mound 
City,  now  rear  their  worn  proportions  above  the  sur- 
rounding plain,  mute  witnesses  to  the  verity  of  the  De 
Soto  narratives,  and  which  have  stood  there  from  that 
time  “whereof  the  memory  of  man  runneth  not  to  the 
contrary  ?” 


The  Chickasaw  Nation 


175 


From  the  province  of  Aquixo,  De  Soto  next  visited 
the  provinces  of  Casqui  and  Pacaha,  and  speaking  of 
these  Ranjel  (page  140)  says: 

“In  Aquixo  and  Casqui  and  Pacaha,  they  saw 
the  best  villages  seen  up  to  that  time,  better  stock- 
aded and  fortified,  and  the  people  were  of  finer 
quality,  excepting  those  of  Cofitachequi.  The  com- 
mander and  the  soldiers  remaining  some  days  in 
Pacaha,  they  made  some  incursions  further  up  coun- 
try.” 

From  these  statements  we  learn  two  things,  that 
the  country  possessed  the  capabilities  of  producing  the 
numerous  and  fine  specimens  of  aborigines,  who  were 
menacing  the  expedition  while  camped  on  the  Chicka- 
saw Bluffs;  and  that  De  Soto  here,  as  was  the  case  long 
before  he  reached  the  Mississippi,  made  “incursions”  or 
side  trips,  and  did  not  follow  continuously  in  any  one 
given  direction. 

It  is  a difficult  matter  to  follow  in  the  footsteps  of 
the  De  Soto  expedition,  unless  that  path  crosses  some 
great  and  imperishable  landmark  like  the  Mississippi 
River,  or  describes  or  refers  to  such  commanding  topo- 
graphical and  indestructible  features  of  the  country 
through  which  it  passed,  as  to  fix  the  route  pursued  with 
reasonable  certainty. 

That  De  Soto  discovered  the  Mississippi  River  on 
the  fourth  Chickasaw  Bluffs,  the  present  site  of  the  City 
of  Memphis,  I submit,  appears  beyond  a reasonable 
doubt. 


